(Yicai) Feb. 10 -- Luzhu Biotechnology has submitted an application to market its recombinant shingles vaccine in China, which would become the aging society's third shingles vaccine.

The National Medical Products Administration has received the application, the Beijing-based company announced yesterday.

Shingles is a viral infection caused by the varicella-zoster virus, the same virus that causes chickenpox. It primarily affects older adults and those with weakened immune systems, leading to expectations of increased vaccine demand in China due to its aging population.

However, based on the performance of the two existing shingles vaccines in the market, attracting customers has proven challenging.

Changchun-based BCHT Biotechnology, one of China's two current sellers of shingles vaccines, reported that sales of the immunization product drove the firm's performance growth to double in 2023, but this boost was short-lived. BCHT's net profit is expected to have declined by 52 to 60 percent in 2024 compared to 2023, according to the firm's latest performance forecast. The company attributed the drop in shingles vaccine shipments to reduced public willingness for vaccination.

London-headquartered GSK, the other seller of shingles vaccines in China, reported a decrease in its local sales last year. Global sales of the product increased by 1 percent to GBP3.364 billion (USD4.2 billion).

The news failed to boost Luzhu's stock price [HKG: 2480], as its shares fell 0.2 percent to HKD24.15 (USD3.10) in Hong Kong today.

Editor: Emmi Laine