Hong Kong-listed Sinopharm reports jump in 2020 profit, says ready to deliver Covid-19 jabs as China targets 500 million shots by June
- Hong Kong-listed unit of state-owned China National Pharmaceutical Group reveals 13.9 per cent jump in profit for 2020
- Company has been preparing to distribute Covid-19 vaccines for a while: president
Sinopharm Holding was ready to deliver the Covid-19 vaccines needed to meet Beijing’s target of more than 500 million vaccinations by June this year, its president said.
“As the country’s top company in operating cold-chain logistics for pharmaceutical products, we have been making preparations to distribute the [Covid-19] vaccines for a while,” Liu Yong said. He said the company was “unable to tell exactly how much our performance can improve by handling the [logistics involved], but it is certain to give us a huge boost”.
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China pushes mass vaccinations to build herd immunity against Covid-19
Beijing is targeting vaccinating 40 per cent of its population – or more than 500 million people – by June. But since it had vaccinated just 65 million people as of mid-March, it will need to give four million shots a day to meet its goal.
Sinopharm conducted a Covid-19 vaccine delivery dry run in December last year to ensure its cold-chain logistics system was safe and efficient. The drill covered all its systems in 31 provinces, autonomous regions and municipalities.
