Pharma firms eye Singapore for bigger global footprint

City state boasts advanced medical resources, efficient management

With improved innovative capabilities, competitiveness and international initiatives, Chinese pharmaceutical firms are expanding business in Singapore to tap into a new "battlefield".

In late December, China Medical System, a Shenzhen, Guangdong province-based biopharmaceutical company, announced the acquisition of a factory in Singapore through wholly owned subsidiary CMS Medical Venture Pte Ltd and non-wholly owned units Rxilient Health and PharmaGend Global Medical Services Pte Ltd. The factory, which is located in Tuas Biomedical Park in Singapore and occupies 60,000 square meters, is expected to support CMS' contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO) business in Southeast Asia.

"With Chinese innovative pharmaceutical companies deepening their globalization drive, exploring a 'second battlefield' in Singapore has become a must. With its role as a hub for the intersection of East and West, as well as its geographical advantage of being part of the Southeast Asian market, Singapore provides ideal industrial and international support for Chinese pharmaceutical companies going abroad to Southeast Asia," said Zhang Jue, a pharmaceutical expert at VBData.cn, a Chongqing-based healthcare service platform.