(Yicai Global) April 6 -- Moderna will accelerate its investment in Shanghai and work with Chinese partners on local research, development, and production to offer patients better pharmaceutical technologies and products, the chief executive of the US biotech firm said during a visit to the city.

Stephane Bancel said on April 4 that the trip showed him the solid foundations and rich resources of the international metropolis, which is committed to developing its pharmaceutical industry and providing healthcare services. The global pharmaceutical industry is in a critical period, ushering in the era of digitalization, he added.

Moderna’s global partner Lonza Group also recently expanded production in China and joined hands with local drugmakers, including Shanghai-based Junshi Biosciences.

Bancel’s visit attracted much attention in the biopharmaceutical industry. “We hope Moderna will invest in Shanghai and bring its business and pipelines in,” a source at a Shanghai-based vaccine maker told Yicai Global.

Moderna is looking for opportunities to work with local Chinese manufacturers but still faces uncertainties, the head of a local mRNA vaccine producer said to Yicai Global.

Moderna produced its first vaccine during the Covid-19 pandemic. Bancel previously said that the company held talks with the Chinese government about releasing the jab in the country, but whether it submitted its vaccine data to Chinese regulators is not known.

Revenue fell 29 percent to USD5.1 billion in the fourth quarter of last year from a year earlier amid lower sales of coronavirus vaccines, Moderna said in its most recent earnings report. Sales of Covid-19-related products are expected to have reached USD5 billion last year.

Editor: Futura Costaglione