China healthcare firms slump on deal for cheap version of Merck COVID-19 pill

ChangMing Industrial Management Holding

21/01/2022 06:26

** Chinese healthcare firms slump, tracking losses in the
broader market, after a landmark U.N.-backed deal gave nearly 30
generic drugmakers in Asia, Africa and the Middle East the
rights to make cheap versions of Merck & Co's  MRK.N  COVID-19
pill
    ** Merck's move to approve production of its molnupiravir
pill by other companies gives poorer nations wider access to the
anti-viral drug  urn:newsml:reuters.com:*:nL1N2U00KP
    ** The CSI300 Health Care Index  .CSI300HC  down 2.4% in
afternoon trade    
    ** Jiangsu Bioperfectus Technologies  688399.SS , Shanghai
ZJ Bio-Tech Co  688317.SS  and Zhejiang Orient Gene Biotech
 688298.SS , which produce products able to detect the Omicron
coronavirus variant, fall between 8.9% and 20%
    ** Vaccine maker CanSino Biologics  688185.SS   6185.HK 
falls more than 6% in Shanghai and more than 8.5% in Hong Kong
    ** The CSI300 index  .CSI300  falls 0.93%, while Hong Kong's
Hang Seng  .HSI  drops 0.66%
    

 (Reporting by Andrew Galbraith)
 ((Andrew.Galbraith@tr.com))