Actavis to quit China’s ‘unfriendly environment’, says CEO

Actavis chief executive and chairman Paul Bisaro said at a bankers' conference his company would give up operating in China's "risky" business environment, according to a Bloomberg report.

"If we're going to allocate capital, we're going to do so where we can get the most amount of return for the least amount of risk. And China is just too risky," Mr Bisaro said at a JPMorgan Chase conference in San Francisco reported by Bloomberg.

Mr Bisaro also reportedly commented on accusations of corruption that have been faced by other pharma companies operating in China: "If something goes wrong, you need to be able to go to the government and say, 'Help me.' And if the government says no, that's a problem."

In July of 2013, GlaxoSmithKline and AstraZeneca were both affected by separate Chinese authority actions against them.

In a statement on Tuesday, 14th January, Actavis predicted maximum-target performance for the 2013 financial year-end.

The Dublin-headquartered company focused on generics outlined growth in global markets, but profits in China were worth only around four or five million euros, Mr Bisaro said at the conference.

"2013 was a transformational year for Actavis, highlighted by the acquisition of Warner Chilcott and continued exceptional performance across our global business.

"Within Actavis Pharma, growth was powered by strong generics launches in global markets and the key launches of generic versions of Suboxone tablets, Lidoderm and Cymbalta in the US."

Paul Bisaro, chairman and chief executive, in a statement from Actavis.