
TOKYO -- Japanese traditional drugmaker Tsumura & Co. will cultivate the Chinese market by tapping the broad customer base and professional network of local company Ping An Insurance Group, with which a tie-up was announced last month.
The two companies are expected to establish a joint venture, with Tsumura taking a majority stake. The new company will integrate all operations from procurement of ingredients to sales. The partners are also searching for land in candidate cities such as Shenzhen to build a research center. The facility will develop traditional medicine and quality control technology among other things. Construction could begin as early as 2018.