By Pushkala Aripaka and Maggie Fick
(Reuters) -AstraZeneca may face a fine of up to $8 million in China over suspected unpaid taxes related to the import of its breast cancer drug Enhertu, the drugmaker said on Tuesday, as it works to revive business in its second-biggest market after scandals.
Despite boasting a strong pipeline, AstraZeneca is contending with headwinds in its top two markets, the United States and China: scandals in China – including the arrest of its local president last year, possible U.S. tariffs on pharmaceutical products, and a trade war between Beijing and Washington.
The latest import issue in China comes after AstraZeneca in February said it could face a similar fine of up to $4.5 million related to cancer drugs Imfinzi and Imjudo, and had said the probe could possibly extend to include Enhertu.
On Tuesday, it said “to the best” of its knowledge that was indeed the case, adding that the suspected unpaid amount related to Enhertu was about $1.6 million and a fine of one to five times that may be levied if the company was found liable.
While the small scale of penalties had reassured investors in February, and the latest fine and a closure of investigations could also add to relief, AstraZeneca shares dropped nearly 4% on Tuesday after the company’s total revenue fell short of expectations.
The company reported core profit of $2.49 per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ mean expectations of $2.27, as compiled by the company, but total revenue of $13.6 billion missed the average estimate of $13.8 billion.
AstraZeneca on Tuesday reiterated its forecasts for 2025.
AstraZeneca also said that it was informed by authorities that they had not found any “illegal gain” to the company from personal information infringement under a separate allegation.
The Chinese government’s Customs Office and Public Security Bureau have finished their investigations into drug importation and personal information infringement allegations, a source familiar with matter said, adding that these cases have now been referred to the prosecutor in Shenzhen.
AstraZeneca is the largest foreign drugmaker in China, which accounted for about 12% of the company’s overall sales last year.
(Reporting by Pushkala Aripaka in Bengaluru and Maggie Fick in London; Editing by Sonia Cheema and Saad Sayeed)
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