Changes in Hong Kong stocks | Innovative drug concept stocks had the highest rise and were included in the basic drug catalogue for the first time, and the implementation of innovative drugs at the grassroots level is expected to accelerate significantly

Zhitongcaijing · 2d ago

The Zhitong Finance App learned that innovative drug concept stocks had the highest gains. As of press release, Collumbotai Biotech (06990) rose 10.5% to HK$550.5; Cinda Biotech (01801) rose 8.38% to HK$97.6; Kangfang Biotech (09926) rose 7.88% to HK$103.4; and Sansheng Pharmaceutical (01530) rose 7.71% to HK$18.73.

According to the news, recently, three departments of the National Health Commission, the State Administration of Traditional Chinese Medicine, and the National Administration for Disease Control and Prevention jointly issued the “National Catalogue of Essential Medicines (2026 Edition)”. The new catalogue will take effect on September 1, 2026. This adjustment is a new round of systematic adjustments after a lapse of eight years following the 2018 edition of the catalogue. This new version of the basic drug catalogue adjustment is regarded by the market as a landmark shift in the policy environment of the innovative drug industry.

Chen Zhu, chief analyst of the healthcare industry at CITIC Securities, said that the biggest highlight of this adjustment was breaking the practice of excluding high-priced innovative treatments for essential drugs for the first time, including domestically produced Class I innovative drugs, GLP-1, monoclonal antibodies and targeted antineoplastic drugs, etc., releasing strong policy signals to support the development of innovative drugs, further broadening the channels for innovative drugs to enter the grassroots level and basic drug use systems, and providing clear policy support and market space for the high-quality development of the domestic innovative drug industry. With the deep collaboration between basic drugs and health insurance, it is expected that the implementation of innovative drugs at the grassroots level will be greatly accelerated.