(Yicai Global) March 3 -- Chinese drugmaker Zhifei Biological Products has received the country's first conditional marketing authorization approval for a recombinant protein Covid-19 vaccine.

The National Medical Products Administration has given the green light to Zhifei's product, the fifth Covid-19 vaccine that the Chinese watchdog has approved for conditional domestic sales, the Chongqing-based firm said in a statement yesterday. Recombinant protein vaccines lack infectious components but help the body recognize the virus to fight it off.

The same product already received the NMPA's approval for emergency use last March. Moreover, it has been gaining similar temporary permits in Uzbekistan, Indonesia, and Colombia. A conditional marketing authorization grants a wider scope of use than an emergency use one.

The vaccine, jointly developed by Zhifei's unit Longcom Biopharmaceutical and the Chinese Academy of Sciences' Institute of Microbiology, was proven to be 92.9 percent effective against the Alpha variant and 77.5 percent effective against the Delta variant, based on data that Zhifei released last August. The vaccine was 100 percent reliable in protecting against severe infections and death.

Zhifei's business performance has improved significantly amid the Covid-19 pandemic. Net profit more than tripled to CNY10.2 billion (USD1.6 billion) last year from 2020, in part affected by the Covid-19 vaccine, according to the firm's unaudited preliminary earnings report. Revenue doubled to CNY30.6 billion.

The company has been increasing output. Last March, Zhifei said it completed a production line to make 300 million doses of vaccines per year.

Zhifei's stock price [SHE: 300122] edged up as much as 3.9 percent to CNY129.50 (USD20.50) by noon.

Editor: Emmi Laine, Xiao Yi