ChinaAMC Hang Seng Biotech ETF (03069.HK) Rises 1.39% Intraday as Gilead Buys PepStar's Oral IL-23R Project for US$1.275 Billion Upfront

NewTimeSpace News: As of 13:52 on October 23, the ChinaAMC Hang Seng Biotech ETF (03069.HK) rose 1.39% to a latest price of HK$14.570. The ETF has traded 7.6244 million units so far today for a turnover of HK$108 million at an average price of HK$14.178, with a turnover rate of 3.45%. It is down 2.93% so far this week. Its current net asset value per unit is HK$14.3906, and its assets under management stand at HK$3.18 billion.

(Note on scope: the net asset value per unit and assets under management are as of October 22, 2026; the week-to-date change is measured against the closing price of HK$15.010 on October 16.)

On the news front, the 2026 congress of the European Society for Medical Oncology (ESMO) opened in Madrid on October 23 and runs until October 27, with five of the 12 core late-breaking abstracts (LBA) coming from Chinese innovative drug assets, including Kelun-Biotech's sac-TMT, Hansoh Pharma's Ris-Rez and Akeso's ivonescimab, most of which have entered overseas Phase III trials or are nearing key data readouts. Among constituents, Ascentage Pharma rose more than 5%, Hansoh Pharma 5.08% and Kelun-Biotech 3.17%, with Simcere, 3SBio, Akeso, Innovent and WuXi Biologics also gaining. Separately, Gilead Sciences announced on October 22 local time that it had entered into a definitive agreement with PepStar Therapeutics to acquire the global rights to its oral IL-23 receptor (IL-23R) inhibitor programme, including lead candidate HCXT-2001, for US$1.275 billion in cash upfront, with the deal expected to close in the fourth quarter of 2026 — the highest upfront payment ever secured by a Chinese innovative drug out-licensing deal.

The ChinaAMC Hang Seng Biotech ETF (03069.HK) is a passively managed exchange-traded fund under China Asset Management (Hong Kong), with the investment objective of closely tracking the performance of the Hang Seng Biotech Index. Compiled by Hang Seng Indexes Company on a net total return basis, the index reflects the overall performance of the 30 largest biotech companies listed in Hong Kong that are eligible for Southbound trading, including pre-revenue companies listed under Chapter 18A of the Listing Rules; its constituents span the Hang Seng Industry Classification System sub-sectors of biotechnology, pharmaceuticals, pharmaceutical distribution, pharmaceutical and biotech contract services, and medical devices and supplies, weighted by freefloat-adjusted market capitalisation with a 10% cap on any single constituent.

Chasing Securities believes that policy boundaries and expectations have been further clarified and that out-licensing deals by Chinese innovative drug companies are likely to stay active: in 2026 to September 14, the total value of China's innovative drug out-licensing deals exceeded US$120 billion, up 36% year on year, with upfront payments exceeding US$10 billion, as average deal size rose steadily and both the amount and share of upfront payments increased — showing that the value of Chinese innovative drug assets is being re-rated by global industrial capital. By the end of 2025, China had 4,751 innovative drugs in development, 33.7% of the global total, making it a major supplier to the global pipeline.