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The office building of biopharmaceutical company AstraZeneca in Shanghai on May 23, 2024. Nurphoto | Getty Images AstraZeneca's China president is under investigation and is cooperating
with Chinese authorities, the company said on Wednesday, sending shares down as much as 5.3%. It was not immediately clear whether the executive Leon Wang was in the custody of the Chinese
government. When asked about Wang's whereabouts, a company spokesperson only reiterated that the executive was under investigation. The Anglo-Swedish company has for years had one of
the strongest market positions among western drugmakers in China, the world's No.2 pharmaceuticals market behind the United States. It has invested heavily in the country, announcing
plans last year to build a $450 million factory and more recently signing a number of licensing deals with Chinese companies. In a statement, the drugmaker said its Chinese operations were
"under the leadership of the current general manager of AstraZeneca China," without providing further details. "If requested, AstraZeneca will fully cooperate with the
investigation", the statement read. AstraZeneca shares were down 5.2% at 1352 GMT. In September, China detained five of AstraZeneca's current and former employees for questioning.
The company has not given details about the detention in September and a spokesperson had no comment on Wednesday on the status of the employees being held.