Fosun Pharma's booth is pictured at an expo in Nanjing, East China's Jiangsu province. (Photo: VCG)

Fosun Pharma will have its portfolio companies and business partners showcase their latest innovations at the upcoming 5th China International Import Expo, the China-based global healthcare group announced during a recent media briefing.

The group, which has attended the annual expo since the inaugural edition in 2018, will present a number of world-leading innovative drugs and medical devices for the first time. They include the world's first oral targeted drug for psoriasis Otezla, the third-generation COMT inhibitor Ongentys to treat Parkinson's disease, and a home beauty instrument, LMNT one, which was developed with Israel's energy source technology, according to Yi Jinyuan, general manager of public relations at Fosun Pharma.

In addition, Fosun International and Fosun Pharma will host the 5th Hongqiao International Health Technology Innovation Forum on the morning of Nov 6 at Primus Hotel Hongqiao, Shanghai.

Themed "gathering innovation and breakthroughs, building a healthy future," the event will be attended by representatives from the government, scientific research institutions and leading pharmaceutical companies from home and abroad. Discussions about global medical technology innovation trends in the post-epidemic era will be held.

"CIIE has played a pivotal role in helping Fosun Pharma become a world-leading pharmaceutical and healthcare enterprise," said Wen Deyong, CEO of Fosun Pharma.

"It's a platform where we find opportunities to broaden our customer base, work with our global counterparts and broaden our horizons."

Wen added that the CIIE's strong spillover effect has also greatly accelerated the entry of the group's innovative products and technology to China.

Over the past four years, several innovative products that Fosun Pharma had exhibited at the CIIE - they include cutting-edge medical devices like the da Vinci Surgical robot, a magnetic resonance guided radiation therapy system, and the CAR-T cell therapy - have gone on to enter the Chinese market.

Wen pointed out that some of Fosun Pharma's global partners have even been convinced to deepen their roots in China and increase investments after attending the annual expo.

For example, in August 2022, Intuitive Fosun, a joint venture by Intuitive Surgical and Fosun Pharma, started building its manufacturing and R&D center for medical robots in Pudong New Area, Shanghai.

The 700-million-yuan ($96.2 million) center aims to meet the growing needs of the Chinese robot market and promote the upgrading of precision medicine in China.