Officials told to shed drug shares

The country's drug watchdog has ordered drug administration officials to divest themselves of the combined 3.5 million shares they hold in pharmaceutical companies.

Qu Shuhui, disciplinary inspection head of the State Food and Drug Administration (SFDA), described the move as a key step towards rooting out corruption in the drug sector.

"Drug officials cannot properly supervise a pharmaceutical company that they hold shares in," Qu said. The SFDA had ordered its staff to relinquish their shares, he added.