British biopharmaceutical giant eager to seize opportunities created by China's innovation drive

BEIJING - Inspired by China's efforts in opening-up and fostering innovation, British biopharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca is committed to the Chinese market.

"AstraZeneca has been present in China for over 30 years. In that time, China has become an important growth engine," said Pascal Soriot, CEO of the company, in an exclusive interview with Xinhua.

Soriot attended the two-day China Devlopment Forum (CDF) 2024, an annual high-level international conference, which concluded on Monday, seeking to identifying new partnerships and opportunities.

"It serves as an excellent platform for international exchange and cooperation," said Soriot.

"Over recent years, we have witnessed the Chinese government's continued commitment to opening-up and its strong determination to attract and utilize foreign investment to promote trade cooperation," he said.

"This has helped to instill confidence in China's economic growth and AstraZeneca's continued investment here," said Soriot.

Making strides in new quality productive forces, which feature high-tech, high efficiency and high quality, is high on China's agenda this year, and Soriot considers it a "tremendously exciting and important in the field of healthcare."

"We are here because China is at the forefront of using artificial intelligence, biotechnology, and renewable energy to shape the future of healthcare, and we believe that Chinese-born innovation can help millions of patients worldwide," he said.

AstraZeneca recently concluded an agreement to invest $475 million in the construction of a new small molecule factory in Wuxi, Jiangsu province, East China, which will focus on sustainable manufacturing. Last year, it announced an investment of $700 million for an inhaled medicines manufacturing site in Qingdao.

In February, it announced that Shanghai had become its fifth global strategic site.

"China possesses a wealth of innovative talent and enormous market potential, all of which helps support the growth of our research and development efforts in the country," said Soriot.

The company signed a memorandum of understanding for strategic cooperation with its Chinese partners during the CDF to explore modes of collaboration in vaccines.

"AstraZeneca is proud to be 'in China for China' and to be playing a leading role in bringing new medicines to Chinese patients as well as Chinese innovation to the world," he said.