China is making inroads in the race for innovative pharmaceuticals, with a record number of drug approvals this year amid growing appeals for multinational giants to run onshore research entities.
Authorities approved 43 innovative drugs in the first half of 2025, marking a 59 per cent year-on-year increase and nearly matching the total of 48 approvals for all of last year, state broadcaster CCTV reported on Wednesday, citing data from the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA).
Many of the 43 innovative drugs approved for market launch are for serious conditions such as cancer, metabolic disorders and immune diseases, the report said.
“China’s reform of drug review and approval processes has enabled pharmaceutical companies to better forecast their returns on R&D investments … making them more willing to pursue long-term, high-risk innovative drug development,” said Yang Ting, director of the NMPA’s drug registration department, in an interview with CCTV.
China is the world’s second-largest biomedicine market, and global players have been increasingly expanding their presence there.
Also in the year’s first half, China set a record for licensing out innovative drugs – referring to rights granted to overseas markets – with a total value of US$48.4 billion, according to figures from mainland pharmaceutical consultancy DrugTimes.
To further refine manufacturing processes and improve drug quality, additional approval procedures are often required after a drug’s market launch.
