Source: Lizzi C. Lee and Jing Qian, “China’s Biotech Boom: Why the Nation Must Collaborate to Stay Ahead,” Nature, February 12, 2026.
Commentary: The United States and the European Union have been the global leaders in pharmaceutical research and development for decades and continue to lead in fundamental biomedical research and clinical trials involving multinational participants. However, in recent years, China has become a leader in pharmaceutical development and manufacturing. In 2024, researchers and scientists in China were responsible for developing more than 1,250 new drugs, more than the EU and just slightly less than the United States, which developed 1,440. In total, China developed 30 percent of the world's new innovative drugs. China’s rapid growth in this industry stems from its entrenched control of the global pharmaceutical supply chain; about 70 to 95 percent of the inputs for essential pharmaceutical products, including common drugs such as ibuprofen, are manufactured in China. Additionally, Chinese pharmaceutical firms benefit from a highly skilled workforce that was largely trained in the United States and the EU. These individuals often studied and worked at leading pharmaceutical firms in the West before bringing their skills to Chinese competitor firms.
