The government plans to help boost the local small-molecule drug CDMO industry by cooperating with firms to jointly develop key technology platforms, the Ministry of Economic Affairs (MOEA) said yesterday.
CDMO refers to a contract development and manufacturing organization, which provides essential services to both pharmaceutical and biotech companies with lower-cost, time-saving drug research, manufacturing and testing processes.
The key technology platforms, which would have a high entry threshold, include active pharmaceutical ingredient (API) intermediates, continuous manufacturing processes as well as special delivery solutions and dosage forms for small molecules, the ministry said in a statement.
Photo courtesy of Ministry of Economic Affairs
The ministry said it would also assist firms in conducting carbon emission investigations, enhance their engagement in international markets and simplify administrative procedures to facilitate global CDMO business opportunities.
The ministry’s remarks came after it held a meeting on Wednesday with representatives from domestic API makers, pharmaceutical formulation providers and
medical associations, as well as several health and welfare officials and researchers to discuss how to promote Taiwan’s small molecule CDMO industry.
Small molecule drugs are synthesized organic compounds with low molecular weights that allow them to penetrate cells easily and target important proteins.
The production value of small molecule drugs accounts for about 70 percent of Taiwan’s total pharmaceutical output of NT$108.9 billion (US$3.5 billion), making it a key part of the nation’s pharmaceutical industry, the ministry said.
However, many local small molecule drug manufacturers are less focused on advanced technology and lack connections with international markets, the ministry said, adding that it aims to help fims upgrade and build international links.
Rising demand for small molecule drugs is expected to create business opportunities for CDMOs. A Future Market Insights report issued in November last year said that the global small molecule CDMO market is projected to be valued at about US$124.53 billion in 2034, as the market is estimated to grow at a compound annual growth rate of 5.24 percent over the next 10 years.
With an approval rating of just two percent, Peruvian President Dina Boluarte might be the world’s most unpopular leader, according to pollsters. Protests greeted her rise to power 29 months ago, and have marked her entire term — joined by assorted scandals, investigations, controversies and a surge in gang violence. The 63-year-old is the target of a dozen probes, including for her alleged failure to declare gifts of luxury jewels and watches, a scandal inevitably dubbed “Rolexgate.” She is also under the microscope for a two-week undeclared absence for nose surgery — which she insists was medical, not cosmetic — and is
CAUTIOUS RECOVERY: While the manufacturing sector returned to growth amid the US-China trade truce, firms remain wary as uncertainty clouds the outlook, the CIER said The local manufacturing sector returned to expansion last month, as the official purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rose 2.1 points to 51.0, driven by a temporary easing in US-China trade tensions, the Chung-Hua Institution for Economic Research (CIER, 中華經濟研究院) said yesterday. The PMI gauges the health of the manufacturing industry, with readings above 50 indicating expansion and those below 50 signaling contraction. “Firms are not as pessimistic as they were in April, but they remain far from optimistic,” CIER president Lien Hsien-ming (連賢明) said at a news conference. The full impact of US tariff decisions is unlikely to become clear until later this month
GROWING CONCERN: Some senior Trump administration officials opposed the UAE expansion over fears that another TSMC project could jeopardize its US investment Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) is evaluating building an advanced production facility in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) and has discussed the possibility with officials in US President Donald Trump’s administration, people familiar with the matter said, in a potentially major bet on the Middle East that would only come to fruition with Washington’s approval. The company has had multiple meetings in the past few months with US Special Envoy to the Middle East Steve Witkoff and officials from MGX, an influential investment vehicle overseen by the UAE president’s brother, the people said. The conversations are a continuation of talks that
CHIP DUTIES: TSMC said it voiced its concerns to Washington about tariffs, telling the US commerce department that it wants ‘fair treatment’ to protect its competitiveness Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Co (TSMC, 台積電) yesterday reiterated robust business prospects for this year as strong artificial intelligence (AI) chip demand from Nvidia Corp and other customers would absorb the impacts of US tariffs. “The impact of tariffs would be indirect, as the custom tax is the importers’ responsibility, not the exporters,” TSMC chairman and chief executive officer C.C. Wei (魏哲家) said at the chipmaker’s annual shareholders’ meeting in Hsinchu City. TSMC’s business could be affected if people become reluctant to buy electronics due to inflated prices, Wei said. In addition, the chipmaker has voiced its concern to the US Department of Commerce
RSS