Pharmaceutical research and development firms in China are increasingly interested in procuring critical supplies known as reagents from local manufacturers, industry executives and managers said, as they seek to cut costs and delivery times.
Western reagent suppliers including US-based Thermo Fisher Scientific and Germany’s Merck (MRCG.DE), opens new tab have profited in the world’s second-largest pharmaceutical market from the compounds used in lab tests for analysis and quality control.
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But rising Chinese import tariffs due to the trade war with the U.S. and longer-term concerns about costs or access are spurring Chinese companies to request products from local rivals like Shanghai Titan Scientific (688133.SS) and Nanjing Vazyme Biotech (688105.SS) instead, the executives and managers said.
The five who spoke to Reuters work at Chinese firms involved in the purchase or supply of reagents and their comments are an early sign of an expected industry shift toward more Chinese purchases.
