On the morning of November 25, the hang seng index fell slightly, while the Hong Kong stock market's biomedical sector performed well. Notably, several biomedical companies saw their stock prices rise significantly due to recent news of major collaboration advancements.

Several biomedical companies have announced progress in their collaborations.

In the morning session, $LAEKNA-B (02105.HK)$ the highest increase exceeded 22%, reaching a new high for the year. As of the time of publication, the increase has narrowed to 15.27%, with the stock price at 16 Hong Kong dollars per share.

On the news front, Akeso recently announced a clinical cooperation agreement with Eli Lilly and Co, targeting obesity. Both parties will support and accelerate the global clinical development of LAE102, with Eli Lilly being responsible for conducting a Phase I study in the United States and covering the related expenses. Akeso will retain the global rights to LAE102 and is committed to bringing this precise treatment to overweight and obese patients in need of new therapeutic options for achieving high-quality weight control.

LAE102 is a monoclonal antibody developed independently by Akeso targeting Act RIIA. In preclinical models, LAE102 has shown effects of increasing muscle and reducing fat. When combined with a GLP-1 receptor agonist, LAE102 can further reduce fat and significantly lower the muscle loss caused by GLP-1 receptor agonists, making LAE102 a high-quality candidate drug for weight control.

In the morning, other notable increases include $CANBRIDGE-B (01228.HK)$ Rising by 15.38% as of the deadline for submission.

This is a biopharmaceutical company focusing on the rare disease field. The company recently announced that the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) has formally accepted the company's NDA for CAN103 (recombinant human acid ceramidase) for the treatment of adults and children with Niemann-Pick Disease Type A and Type C.

In addition, $ZAI LAB (09688.HK)$ Increased by 7.54%, at HK$21.25 per share.

Zai Lab recently announced a strategic cooperation in Mainland China with Pfizer for the novel antibacterial drug Zoryllo (sulbactam sodium-cefoperazone sodium), with Pfizer's subsidiary exclusively responsible for the commercial operation in Mainland China. Zoryllo is currently the only antibacterial drug developed specifically for carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii (CRAB). The product has been approved in the United States and Mainland China in 2023 and 2024 respectively.

Recently, Akeso (09926.HK), which has attracted attention in the domestic medical insurance negotiation, rose by over 4% in early trading today, closing at HK$75.45 per share. Akeso is carrying two innovative drugs for medical insurance breakthroughs this year, one being the new drug 'Kattani' that fills the immunotherapy gap for recurrent and metastatic cervical cancer, and the other being the anti-tumor monoclonal antibody drug 'Anniko'.

The results of the domestic medical insurance negotiation are expected to be announced this week.

From October 27th to 30th, 2024, the national medical insurance negotiation took place in Beijing, with 162 pharmaceutical products participating in on-site negotiations and bidding. It was learned from the National Medical Insurance Administration that the revised medical insurance drug catalog, after the 'expansion,' is expected to be released to the public by the end of November and will officially be implemented on January 1st next year.

As an annual event in the medical industry, the medical insurance negotiation serves as a window to lower drug prices and improve drug accessibility, and also sets the tone for the development of the pharmaceutical industry. This round of medical insurance negotiation, following the 'Full Chain Support for Innovative Drug Development Implementation Plan,' is the first national medical insurance negotiation after the plan. The attitude of medical insurance negotiations towards innovative drugs has attracted significant attention.

Huaxin Securities analysts stated that the purpose of this round of negotiations is not only to improve drug accessibility and balance the income and expenditure of medical insurance but also to support the innovative development of enterprises. The selected varieties for negotiation are directions that are willing to provide incremental support in medical insurance medical expenditure, reflecting the support of medical insurance for the development of medical and pharmaceutical innovation.

Since 2023, the pharmaceutical industry has undergone various adjustments such as the anti-corruption measures in medical care, pharmaceutical insurance audits in pharmacies, negotiations to reduce prices of high-value consumables, and joint procurement of OTC varieties. These events have been generally negative, causing market concerns about continued policy suppression on the development of the medical industry. However, looking at medical insurance expenditure in recent years, medical insurance spending has maintained stable growth.

According to statistics from the National Medical Insurance Administration, the overall medical insurance expenditure for January to October 2024 was 1916.588 billion yuan, with a growth rate of 8.94% compared to the same period in 2023. The increased expenditure not only satisfies the increased demand for medical guarantees due to aging but also includes the coverage of new technologies such as innovative drugs, innovative medical devices, and innovative medical management.

Pacific Securities analysts stated that the approval rate of experts for this year's national negotiation was relatively low, indicating the increasing demands of payment parties for truly innovative drugs. He predicts that data catalysts and BD expectations (License-out, joint development, NewCo) will once again become the main focus for innovative drugs.