Reporter Yan Guowen and Cao Xueping report from Beijing

(Some of the products in the product pipeline that are progressing faster Prospectus/Chart).

In the face of increasingly fierce competition in the influenza vaccine market, on January 23, 2025, influenza vaccine manufacturer Jiangsu Zhonghui Yuantong Biotechnology Co., Ltd. (hereinafter referred to as "Zhonghui Biotech") disclosed its prospectus on the Hong Kong Stock Exchange.

The quadrivalent influenza subunit vaccine is the first and only product of Sinowise Biologics to be commercialized. Through the vaccine platform, it can be found that the price of Zhonghui Biotech's quadrivalent influenza subunit vaccine at each vaccination site is generally 319-344 yuan/piece. This is much higher than the current prices of other competing products.

In the first half of 2024, the three major biological product research institutes of Sinopharm Group, Hualan Biotechnology (002007. SZ), Beijing Sinovac, Jindike (688670. SH) and others collectively lowered the price of influenza vaccine, from the previous unit price of more than 100 yuan per piece to a minimum of 78 yuan per piece.

Regarding the price of influenza vaccine and market competition, the reporter of "China Business Daily" contacted Zhonghui Biotech, but there was no response as of press time.

The market for flu vaccines is in a hurry

Price reduction can be said to be the core keyword of the flu vaccine market in 2024.

According to the "Notice on Adjusting the Supply Price of Some Vaccines" issued by the Jiangsu Provincial Public Resources Trading Center on May 20, 2024, the Changchun Institute of Biological Products, the Shanghai Institute of Biological Products, and the Wuhan Institute of Biological Products have uniformly lowered the quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine from 128 yuan per vial to 88 yuan per vial.

Subsequently, on June 4, 2024, Beijing Sinovac also adjusted the price of quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine, reducing the price of quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine (prefilled dosage form, 0.5mL/piece) from 128 yuan/piece to 88 yuan/piece; The price of quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine (vial, 0.5mL/bottle) was reduced from 108 yuan/bottle to 78 yuan/bottle.

On June 5, 2024, Hualan Biotech also decided to reduce the price of influenza vaccines. Hualan Biotech said that in order to improve the accessibility of influenza vaccine, enhance the market competitiveness and market share of the company's products, reduce the economic burden of the people and the government, and assume corporate social responsibility, the price of quadrivalent influenza vaccine products was adjusted in combination with the current market situation: quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine (adult dosage form, prefilled, 0.5mL/piece) was adjusted to 88 yuan/piece; Quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine (adult dosage form, vial, 0.5mL/bottle) adjusted to 85 yuan/bottle; Quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine (children's dosage form, prefilled, 0.25mL/piece) was adjusted to 128 yuan/piece.

Hualan Biotech said that the price adjustment is expected to adversely affect the company's quadrivalent influenza vaccine sales revenue. In the long run, the price reduction is conducive to stimulating the growth of the influenza vaccine market demand, further increasing the influenza vaccination rate, expanding the market scale, and bringing market opportunities for price for volume.

In the first half of 2024, the sales revenue of Hualan Bio's influenza vaccine will only be 11.21 million yuan, a decrease of about 92.43% from 148 million yuan in the same period in 2023.

On June 13, 2024, Jindike, whose main product is the flu vaccine, also significantly reduced the price of the flu vaccine.

Jindike's quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine (adult dosage form, prefilled, 0.5mL/piece) was also adjusted from 128 yuan/piece to 88 yuan/piece; Quadrivalent influenza virus split vaccine (adult dosage form, vial, 0.5mL/bottle) has also been adjusted from 125 yuan/bottle to 85 yuan/bottle.

Jindike said that the company's current main business income comes from the sales of quadrivalent influenza vaccine, and the product structure and main business income source is single, and the price adjustment is expected to have an adverse impact on the company's revenue and profit. In the long run, this adjustment of product prices will reduce the cost of influenza vaccination to a certain extent, help improve the accessibility and penetration rate of influenza vaccine in China, and stimulate the growth of influenza vaccine market demand.

The price reduction of the flu vaccine has a significant adverse impact on Jindike's performance in 2024. In 2024, Jindike's operating income is expected to decrease by 26.78%-40.86% year-on-year, and the non-net profit is expected to be -110 million yuan to -100 million yuan.

The flu vaccine contributes to all revenues

The only product that has been marketed by Sinowise is the quadrivalent influenza subunit vaccine. For the whole year of 2023 and the first nine months of 2024, the revenue of Zhonghui Biotech will be 52 million yuan and 217 million yuan respectively, and all the revenue will come from quadrivalent influenza subunit vaccine. In the same period, the losses of Zhonghui Biotech were 425 million yuan and 168 million yuan respectively.