Pfizer Inc. CEO calls for collaboration between the U.S. pharmaceutical industry and China.

Pfizer Inc. (PFE.US) CEO Albert Bourla said on Tuesday that the US pharmaceutical industry needs to collaborate with the Chinese pharmaceutical industry. Over the past decade, China's efficient research and development process has increased its global share in drug development to 30%. Bourla stated at a dinner hosted by the National Committee on US-China Relations in New York: "In the biopharmaceutical field, China's astonishing speed, cost, and scale advantages have changed the global competitive landscape." He revealed that China currently has about 1,200 new drug candidates, compared to just 60 a decade ago. This statement comes as President Trump implements a series of tariff measures against China, its major economic competitor. These tariffs on imports worth billions of dollars are reportedly aimed at reducing the large trade deficit, reviving manufacturing, and combating the fentanyl trade. Last year, the US House of Representatives also passed a bill attempting to restrict US companies from cooperating with Chinese pharmaceutical companies. Although the bill did not pass the Senate, a new version was reintroduced earlier this year. Despite trade tensions between China and the US, MEI Pharma, Inc. is still looking to China to complement its drug development pipeline. Earlier this year, Pfizer Inc. reached an agreement with Chinese company 3SBIO for an experimental cancer therapy, with a $1.25 billion upfront payment and up to $4.8 billion in milestone payments. Bourla emphasized that Chinese biotech companies accounted for nearly one-third of total drug licensing transactions by major pharmaceutical companies last year, marking a significant shift in innovation sources. He added that SINO BIOPHARM's efficiency in recruiting clinical trial patients is 2 to 5 times higher than that of its US counterparts.