(Yicai Global) May 19 -- Janssen Pharmaceuticals Inc. will invest more than USD500 million in China to develop medicines to treat pulmonary disease, which is rampant in the country.

Eventual production will first be marketed in China before extending to the whole world, said William N. Hait, global head of Janssen's research and development department.

Janssen, a subsidiary of the US Johnson & Johnson [NYSE:JNJ] pharmaceutical company, plans to market more than 10 new drugs or apply for approvals from regulatory institutions, and will expand its line of over 50 existing products between 2017-2021. The company will also promote its sustainable growth by taking advantage of its core product mix, innovation mode, and Swiss Actelion Pharmaceuticals Ltd., which Janssen will soon acquire. The US Food and Drug Administration has approved 11 of the company's new molecular medicines since 2011,Economic InformationDailyreported.

As the company's Chinese market rapidly develops, one focus of Johnson & Johnson's global strategy is to continue to invest in China, said Alex Gorsky, Johnson & Johnson's global board chairman and chief executive. The pharmaceutical department will be key to the company's innovation and growth, helping it to realize steady, consistent and sustainable development.