(Yicai) Jan. 26 -- Shares in WuXi Biologics dived on concerns about a new US bill targeting Chinese biotech companies with alleged military ties, though the firm’s chief executive played down the potential impact.

WuXi Biologics [HKG: 2269] closed down 18.2 percent at HKD24.55 (USD3.14) in Hong Kong today. Shares of its parent firm, WuXi AppTec [SHA: 603259] sank by their 10 percent daily trading limit in Shanghai to CNY65.96 (USD9.23), while its Hong Kong-traded stock [HKG: 2359] shed 16.4 percent to HKD64.60 (USD8.27).

The bill “is just a proposal by a US senator and is highly unlikely to become law,” Chen Zhisheng told Yicai today. Even if the bill were passed, it would “take years for it to become law,” he noted, adding that Shanghai-based WuXi Biologics will make a statement on the issue at the earliest.

The bill would ban certain Chinese biotech firms from getting US government contracts. It was introduced by Senator Gary C. Peters on Dec. 20, and yesterday it gained bipartisan support from lawmakers, who said it would protect the health and genetic information of Americans.

The bill puts WuXi AppTec, from which WuXi Biologics was spun off several years ago, and Shenzhen-based BGI Genomics on a list of “biotechnology companies of concern.”

The bill would have to be passed by the House and Senate and signed by President Joe Biden before becoming law.

Editor: Tom Litting