China's $5 bln deal in international blood products

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A leading Chinese blood products manufacturer said it plans to combine with Grifols Diagnostic Solutions Inc. (GDS) for about a five billion U.S. dollars deal as part of its efforts to enhance its global share and address blood undersupply.

Shanghai RAAS Blood Products Co. Ltd. was in talks with the GDS, a Spanish company's U.S. unit, to make it a major strategic shareholder valued at around five billion U.S. dollars, according to the statement announced on Thursday.

Shanghai RAAS also said in the statement that it will acquire Tiancheng (Germany), which holds about 90 percent of the shares of German-based blood products firm Biotest AG for 589 million euros (667 million U.S. dollars).

Both deals are still awaiting regulatory approval, the company said.

Blood products market in China in undersupply

Blood products for the domestic market are still in short supply. The blood products industry faces stricter safety requirements and tightened regulations, said the statement.

The only blood products that are allowed to be imported into China are human serum albumin. Imports account for 60 percent of human serum albumin in China, and the proportion has been rising in recent years, showing a greater demand gap, according to the statement.

Tie-up cooperation is a new trend. Chinese blood products companies are stepping up efforts to introduce new technologies to diversify their product lines. Foreign blood products suppliers like GDS, on the other hand, can also gain opportunities to take a share of the Chinese market.