Singapore: In a bid to rebuild its presence in China's lucrative pharma industry, British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline(GSK) has inked a deal with Shanghai-based Desano Pharmaceuticals to manufacture HIV drugs at a cheaper price in China.

Under the agreement between ViiV Healthcare, the HIV unit of GSK and Desano Pharmaceuticals, the Chinese group will produce the active ingredient for its dolutegravir, or Tivicay, medicine in order to widen access to HIV drugs in China and other developing countries at "competitive" prices.

The collaboration marks an improvement in the business climate for the drugmaker after its tough time during the corruption crackdown. "The deal with Desano is a significant achievement to facilitate access to our medicines. With our recent agreement with the Medicines Patent Pool and our other access initiatives this deal is aligned with our ongoing commitment to improve access to our medicines in countries where the need is greatest." said Dr Dominique Limet, CEO, ViiV Healthcare.

Tivicay is approved in over 70 countries across North America, Europe, Asia, Australia, Africa and Latin America. A regulatory application for dolutegravir is currently being evaluated by the China Food and Drug Administration (CFDA).