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AstraZeneca: China's Investigation into Exec Separate from Medical Insurance Probe

The AstraZeneca logo is pictured outside the AstraZeneca office building in Brussels, Belgium, January 28, 2021. REUTERS/Johanna Geron/File Photo
The AstraZeneca logo is pictured outside the AstraZeneca office building in Brussels, Belgium, January 28, 2021. REUTERS/Johanna Geron/File Photo
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AstraZeneca: China's Investigation into Exec Separate from Medical Insurance Probe

The AstraZeneca logo is pictured outside the AstraZeneca office building in Brussels, Belgium, January 28, 2021. REUTERS/Johanna Geron/File Photo
The AstraZeneca logo is pictured outside the AstraZeneca office building in Brussels, Belgium, January 28, 2021. REUTERS/Johanna Geron/File Photo

AstraZeneca said on Wednesday that to its knowledge an ongoing investigation by Chinese authorities into the company's top executive in the country, Leon Wang, is separate from a large health insurance fraud case also involving the company.

The drugmaker said its Chief Financial Officer Aradhana Sarin had briefed investors on the subject on Wednesday to quell concerns about the fraud probe expanding following a report by financial media company Yicai a day earlier that led its shares to plunge more than 8%.

The Anglo-Swedish drugmaker confirmed on Wednesday that Wang, its China president, was in Chinese custody. One week ago, AstraZeneca said that Wang was under investigation and that the drugmaker would cooperate with authorities, according to Reuters.

AstraZeneca said on Wednesday it did not know what Wang was detained for.

The Yicai report on Tuesday said that dozens of the drugmaker's senior executives in China could be implicated in the largest insurance fraud case in the country's pharma sector in years. But AstraZeneca said on Wednesday that to its knowledge the insurance fraud case did not involve any current AstraZeneca executives.

AstraZeneca has invested heavily in the world's No. 2 pharmaceuticals market.

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Japan's Space Agency Halts Epsilon S Rocket Engine Test after Fire

Smoke and fire is seen during a combustion test of an engine for a new small Japanese rocket Epsilon S at Tanegashima Space Center, Kagoshima prefecture, southern Japan, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
Smoke and fire is seen during a combustion test of an engine for a new small Japanese rocket Epsilon S at Tanegashima Space Center, Kagoshima prefecture, southern Japan, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
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Japan's Space Agency Halts Epsilon S Rocket Engine Test after Fire

Smoke and fire is seen during a combustion test of an engine for a new small Japanese rocket Epsilon S at Tanegashima Space Center, Kagoshima prefecture, southern Japan, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)
Smoke and fire is seen during a combustion test of an engine for a new small Japanese rocket Epsilon S at Tanegashima Space Center, Kagoshima prefecture, southern Japan, Tuesday, Nov. 26, 2024. (Kyodo News via AP)

Japan's space agency aborted an engine test for the Epsilon S rocket on Tuesday following a fire at the test site, a failure that could push the rocket's debut launch beyond the March-end target and cause further delays in the national space program.
An explosion could be heard and a blaze could be seen shortly after the ground combustion test started at the Tanegashima Space Center in southwestern Japan, according to footage from public broadcaster NHK.
The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) said the engine test encountered a "combustion abnormality" 49 seconds after the ignition. It said there was no indication of injury or damage to the outside facility, Reuters reported.
"JAXA will conduct a thorough investigation into the cause of the problem and consider countermeasures," Chief Cabinet Secretary Yoshimasa Hayashi said at a regular press briefing.
Hayashi, the top government spokesperson, said rocket development is "extremely important" to ensure the autonomy of Japan's space program.
JAXA partnered with the aerospace unit of heavy machinery maker IHI to develop Epsilon S, the next generation in the Epsilon solid-fuel small rocket series. Shares in IHI were down as much as 6% in Tokyo trade. An IHI Aerospace spokesperson said the company is investigating the cause.
Epsilon S's debut flight was slated by the end of the fiscal year through March 31 depending on the success of Tuesday's engine test.
The test was conducted after previous failures triggered months of investigation that have delayed space missions and satellite launch plans.
In July last year, an Epsilon S engine test failed due to thermal damage to its ignition systems. That followed a launch failure in 2022.
JAXA's larger flagship rocket H3, built by Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, failed at its first launch last year but has succeeded in three flights this year, launching Japanese satellites and winning orders including from French satellite operator Eutelsat.
The H3 and Epsilon S are central to JAXA's ambition to build cost-competitive rockets amid the rise of American commercial launch providers such as market leader SpaceX and small rocket maker Rocket Lab.
In the private sector, IHI-backed Space One is set to attempt the second launch of its Kairos small rocket on Dec. 14 after the first flight exploded in March. It aims to become the first Japanese business to put a satellite in orbit.