Chinese drugmakers more than doubled the value of their licensing deals in 2025 from a year earlier, hitting a record high as dozens of multibillion-dollar agreements were signed with global pharmaceutical companies.

A total of157 out-licensing deals worthUS$135.7 billion were completed last year, compared with94 transactions valued atUS$51.9 billion in2024, state media reported, citing data released last week by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA), China’s drug regulator.

The surge was driven by a growing number of partnerships between Hong Kong- and mainland China-listed biopharmaceutical firms and international drugmakers, reflecting rising global interest in Chinese-developed therapies and technologies.