ST Pharm Co., Ltd.

AstraZeneca's $15 billion pledge to China, Boehringer and Simcere's IBD deal, and a more complicated ADC market dynamic made our news this week. AstraZeneca made a big commitment to China as CEO Pascal Soriot joined British Prime Minister Keir Starmer on a trip to the country. Boehringer Ingelheim secured a preclinical inflammatory bowel disease bispecific from Simcere. Daiichi Sankyo's U.S. chief talked about the success—and challenges—the company is seeing with Enhertu and Datroway. And more.1. AstraZeneca vows $15B China investment to boost cell therapy and radioconjugate capabilitiesAstraZeneca said it will invest $15 billion in China through 2030 to expand drug manufacturing and R&D. The company highlighted cell therapy and radioconjugates as targeted areas for investment. The announcement was made as AZ CEO Pascal Soriot joined British Prime Minister Keir Starmer’s delegation of more than 50 representatives on a state visit to China. GSK’s board chair Jonathan Symonds and Haleon CEO Brian McNamara were also on the delegation.2. AstraZeneca returns to China's CSPC for $18.5B obesity dealRight on the heels of the investment pledge, AZ on Friday unveiled a deal worth up to $18.5 billion with China's CSPC Pharmaceuticals for the ex-China rights to the biopharma’s once-monthly injectable weight management portfolio of eight programs. The deal features $1.2 billion in upfront cash.3. Boehringer pens €1.05B deal for Simcere's preclinical IBD bispecificMeanwhile, Boehringer Ingelheim has obtained ex-China rights to a preclinical inflammatory bowel disease bispecific antibody from Simcere. The drug targets TL1A and IL-23p19 and has “demonstrated superior synergistic efficacy, even outperforming the combination of the two corresponding monotherapies” in preclinical studies, Boehringer said. The deal could be worth up to 1.05 billion euros.4. Daiichi Sankyo navigates complexity of success as Enhertu, Datroway push for market dominanceAs Enhertu moves to earlier lines of treatment, Daiichi Sankyo is dealing with some nuanced treatment questions that could affect the star antibody-drug conjugate’s revenue outlook. These include how long the drug should be used in first-line breast cancer and whether it’s suitable for continuous neoadjuvant-plus-adjuvant treatment in early-stage disease. It all comes as Datroway faces increased competition in the TROP2 space.5. Takeda, still in a Vyvanse slog, lifts guidance as it looks to new wave of growthDuring the nine months ended Dec. 31, Takeda generated revenue of 3.4 trillion Japanese yen ($22.3 billion), down 3.3% year over year, no thanks to generic erosion of Vyvanse. However, the gap between the Vyvanse decline and growth from new meds is narrowing. Looking to its next wave of growth, Takeda is preparing for the launches of narcolepsy med oveporexton and polycythemia vera treatment rusfertide.6.  Qilu programs path into cardiometabolic disease with $120M, AI-enabled Insilico allianceInsilico Medicines has signed another partner for its artificial intelligence drug discovery platform. This time, Qilu Pharmaceutical is offering up to $120 million to collaborate on small molecules for treating cardiometabolic diseases. Insilico will be responsible for designing and optimizing the molecules, while Qilu will handle development and commercialization.7. Formation Bio’s China shopping spree continues with $500M biobucks autoimmune pactFormation Bio’s newly created subsidiary Kenmare Bio is gaining ex-China rights to a miR-124 activator from China’s Jiangsu Chia Tai Feng Hai Pharmaceutical in a deal worth up to $500 million. The Formation unit will use its AI capabilities to accelerate the drug’s development “in a range of autoimmune diseases.” Sino Biopharmaceutical’s Chia Tai Feng Hai has studied the drug in preclinical models for ulcerative colitis.Other News of Note: 8. China regulators suspend sale of Sun Pharma's dementia med after site inspection9. Lisata reclaims China rights to solid tumor candidate ahead of acquisition10. ST Pharm inks $56M deal to produce API for a US biotech11. FDA sets decision date for Summit’s PD-1xVEGF bid (regulatory tracker)12. Elevar refiles Hengrui-partnered PD-1 combo with FDA in first-line liver cancer (release)

President Donald Trump threatened to raise tariffs on South Korean pharmaceuticals from 15% to 25%. He wrote in a Truth Social post on Monday that South Korea is “not living up” to the trade deal it struck with the US in October, claiming the country’s National Assembly hasn’t yet approved the deal. “What is needed now is to quickly confirm the intent and facts of the US statement and correct any misunderstandings,” said South Korea’s democratic party spokesperson Kim Hyun-jung in a statement on Tuesday. The Democratic Party of Korea said it planned to discuss the tariff hike at a government meeting held on Tuesday. Siegfried has acquired the drug substance businesses of Noramco and Extractas Bioscience from SK Capital Partners. The acquisition gives Siegfried three small molecule drug substance factories in Wilmington, DE, Athens, GA and Westbury, Tasmania. Siegfried will also absorb 400 staffers. As a result of this transaction, the remaining capabilities of Noramco will function as a separate CDMO called Halo Pharma and are expected to be online in the second half of this year. The EU and India reached a trade deal on Monday after nearly two decades of negotiations. Under the agreement, India will “mostly” eliminate an 11% tariff on EU pharmaceuticals, according to a European Commission news release . That process, however, could take up to a decade, most likely around 5 to 7 years, according to a fact sheet published this week. India’s deal with the EU to scrap tariffs on European pharma goods marks a small win for the bloc as it seeks to boost its global competitiveness in the sector. Antheia raised an additional $24 million in the second close of its Series C funding round, bringing its total raised to over $175 million over the last year. Antheia will use the financing to expand its commercial manufacturing capacity and onshore production to the US. The Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI) is funding MSD , Merck’s non-US branch, $30 million to develop an Ebola vaccine with an improved manufacturing process, which will make it cheaper and more accessible for low- and middle-income countries. MSD will work to raise the shelf-life temperature of its Zaire ebolavirus vaccine to reduce its cost and make it easier to distribute. Thermo Fisher Scientific pulled in 4% more revenue for 2025 compared to the year before, reaching a total of $44.56 billion, with its fourth quarter also increasing by 7% to $12.21 billion, beating analysts’ expectations. Meanwhile, several new deals were announced this week:

Korea's ST Pharm has signed a contract worth $56 million with an unidentified U.S. biotech to produce active pharmaceutical ingredients for a new treatment for severe hypertriglyceridemia. ST Pharm has struck a deal with an undisclosed U.S.-based biotech to produce active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) for an upcoming oligonucleotide-based treatment. The Korean CDMO revealed the contract Friday in a regulatory filing.The agreement nets ST 82.5 billion Korean won ($56 million) to produce raw materials for an upcoming oligonucleotide asset for severe hypertriglyceridemia and runs from Jan. 22 to Dec. 18 of this year, according to the filing. The deal is significant for the 43-year-old manufacturer as the amount ST won is equal to 30% of its revenue from its most recent fiscal year—274 billion won ($187 million) in 2024.Specializing in the production of oligonucleotides, ST Pharm is well positioned for growth. The company has responded to increased demand for the RNA snippets by establishing its second oligonucleotide production facility last year, according to local news outlet Korea Biomedical Review. Oligonucleotides are used as synthetic building blocks for treatments that modulate gene expression.The oligonucleotide market, which stood at $10.5 billion in 2025, is projected to grow to $24.7 billion by 2030, according to MarketsandMarkets Research.  Multiple approved oligonucleotide-based therapies have already hit the market via companies like Alnylam and Biogen.Meanwhile, Ionis and Arrowhead both recently scored FDA approvals for the oligonucleotide-based therapies Tryngolza and Redemplo, respectively, in the genetic high triglyceride condition familial chylomicronemia syndrome. Arrowhead has said it is further developing its small interfering RNA therapy Redemplo in severe hypertriglyceridemia, while APOC-III-directed antisense oligonucleotide Tryngolza won an FDA breakthrough tag in the indication in December.