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Eric Ng

Shares in Jiangsu Hengrui Pharmaceuticals, China’s largest drug maker by market value, got a boost on Thursday after it announced its fifth licensing deal of the year, widening its access to the key emerging market of India.
The Shanghai-listed company, which went public in Hong Kong in May and raised HK$9.9 billion (US$1.26 billion), struck a deal with Glenmark Specialty of Mumbai-based Glenmark Pharmaceuticals, it said in a stock exchange filing late on Wednesday.
The agreement was part of an effort to leverage overseas partners’ resources to help bring new drugs it discovered to the global market, Hengrui added.
“The company adheres to the dual strategy of independent research and development and open collaboration,” it said. “While pursuing organic growth, it actively strengthens international partnerships to accelerate the translation of R&D achievements.”
The deal gives the Indian partner the right to develop and commercialise trastuzumab rezetecan, a cancer drug that was approved in May in mainland China for a type of lung cancer, in markets excluding China, the US, Canada, Japan, Europe and 10 former Soviet republic nations. The drug also has the potential to treat other solid cancers.
Glenmark will pay US$18 million for the rights and could make further payments of up to US$1.1 billion if certain regulatory and commercial performance targets are met.
Hengrui’s shares gained 2.6 per cent to HK$89.70 on Thursday.
The deal gave Hengrui access to certain key emerging markets like India while retaining rights in the biggest pharmaceutical markets, said Zhang Jialin, Nomura’s head of China healthcare research.
“Partnering with Glenmark in these markets can also help Hengrui unlock the commercial potential, [while] reserving the development and commercial rights in several major markets [and allowing] Hengrui to further collaborate with other potential partners in a potentially bigger deal,” he said in a note on Thursday.
Trastuzumab rezetecan was approved in mainland China for the treatment of advanced non-small-cell lung tumours with HER2 genetic mutations, in cases where the tumour could not be surgically removed or where the cancer had spread to other organs. It targets patients who received at least one prior therapy.

It was the first antibody-drug conjugate (ADC) cancer treatment designed by a mainland Chinese firm to be approved for such patients, Hengrui said. ADC is a monoclonal antibody designed to deliver potent chemotherapy drugs directly to cancer cells while minimising damage to healthy tissue.
Multiple clinical studies of trastuzumab rezetecan were ongoing for other solid cancers, Hengrui said.
Last month, the combination of the drug with adebrelimab and chemotherapy obtained orphan drug designation from the US Food and Drug Administration for gastric or gastro-oesophageal junction cancer.
Drug candidates with this designation receive benefits such as tax credits for clinical trials and market exclusivity, which helps to enhance their commercial viability.
Earlier this month, Hengrui’s application to treat breast cancer with trastuzumab rezetecan was also accepted by China’s National Medical Products Administration (NMPA).
The drug was included in the NMPA’s priority review programme for nine types of cancers, including lung, breast, stomach, colon, biliary tract and the female reproductive system, Hengrui said.
Before this deal, Hengrui signed 17 agreements to license the development and commercial rights for its drug candidates, involving US$1 billion of upfront payments and US$25 billion of performance-based payments, TF Securities’ analysts said in a note earlier this month.
One of the largest was GSK’s deal to acquire global rights to develop a dozen drugs, with a US$500 million upfront payment and up to US$12 billion in performance payments.


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Shares rise after Mumbai-based Glenmark Pharmaceuticals strikes deal for cancer drug


Shares rise after Mumbai-based Glenmark Pharmaceuticals strikes deal for cancer drug.


China’s Hengrui gets boost from fifth drug-licensing deal of year, adds India partner

.css-1c6uqr6{color:inherit;font-weight:inherit;font-size:inherit;font-family:inherit;line-height:inherit;overflow-wrap:break-word;}Shares rise after Mumbai-based Glenmark Pharmaceuticals strikes deal for cancer drug

Shares rise after Mumbai-based Glenmark Pharmaceuticals strikes deal for cancer drug