Lotus Pharmaceuticals Co (美時化學製藥) yesterday launched the world’s first generic equivalent of the oncology drug Revlimid (lenalidomide) in a number of central and east European markets.
The company’s bioequivalent drug has been approved in Romania, Croatia, Bulgaria and the Baltic states, and it is eyeing a global launch this year.
Revlimid treats multiple myeloma, myelodysplastic syndromes and mantle cell lymphoma, and is considered to be the single biggest-selling oncology drug, with approximately US$9.8 billion in global sales, the company said.
The product is marketed in the form of 2.5mg, 5mg, 7.5mg, 10mg, 15mg, 20mg and 25mg capsules, it said, adding that the new generic drug represents a milestone at its production plant in Nantou County.
The company last month also added Evista (raloxifene), which is used in the prevention and treatment of osteoporosis, to its portfolio of branded products via a US$22 million acquisition deal with Takeda Pharmaceutical Co.
Lotus is to take over all of the product’s intellectual property and existing businesses in seven Asia-Pacific markets, including Hong Kong, Macau and Thailand, from April, while a formal closing of the deal is expected early next year.
In related news, TaiMed Biologics Inc (中裕新藥) yesterday said that the European Medicines Agency (EMA) has completed onsite inspections of its manufacturing partner as the company nears the launch of Trogarzo, its HIV/AIDS drug in the single market.
TaiMed said that EMA inspectors found no critical deficiencies at the facilities at China’s WuXi AppTed (藥明康德), its manufacturing partner.
Trogarzo has been granted accelerated assessment procedure by the EMA and has been under review since September last year.
The company expects the drug to be approved before the end of next year.
Meanwhile, the company’s NT$1 billion protein manufacturing plant in Hsinchu County’s Jhubei City (竹北) is expected to begin production next year, helping it reduce its reliance on costly contract manufacturing and diversify its supply sources.
China’s economic planning agency yesterday outlined details of measures aimed at boosting the economy, but refrained from major spending initiatives. The piecemeal nature of the plans announced yesterday appeared to disappoint investors who were hoping for bolder moves, and the Shanghai Composite Index gave up a 10 percent initial gain as markets reopened after a weeklong holiday to end 4.59 percent higher, while Hong Kong’s Hang Seng Index dived 9.41 percent. Chinese National Development and Reform Commission Chairman Zheng Shanjie (鄭珊潔) said the government would frontload 100 billion yuan (US$14.2 billion) in spending from the government’s budget for next year in addition
Advanced Micro Devices Inc (AMD) suffered its biggest stock decline in more than a month after the company unveiled new artificial intelligence (AI) chips, but did not provide hoped-for information on customers or financial performance. The stock slid 4 percent to US$164.18 on Thursday, the biggest single-day drop since Sept. 3. Shares of the company remain up 11 percent this year. AMD has emerged as the biggest contender to Nvidia Corp in the lucrative market of AI processors. The company’s latest chips would exceed some capabilities of its rival, AMD chief executive officer Lisa Su (蘇姿丰) said at an event hosted by
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TECH JUGGERNAUT: TSMC shares have more than doubled since ChatGPT’s launch in late 2022, as demand for cutting-edge artificial intelligence chips remains high Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday posted a better-than-expected 39 percent rise in quarterly revenue, assuaging concerns that artificial intelligence (AI) hardware spending is beginning to taper off. The main chipmaker for Nvidia Corp and Apple Inc reported third-quarter sales of NT$759.69 billion (US$23.6 billion), compared with the average analyst projection of NT$748 billion. For last month alone, TSMC reported revenue jumped 39.6 percent year-on-year to NT$251.87 billion. Taiwan’s largest company is to disclose its full third-quarter earnings on Thursday next week and update its outlook. Hsinchu-based TSMC produces the cutting-edge chips needed to train AI. The company now makes more
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