Korean pharmaceutical company Chong Kun Dang (CKD) said on Monday it has signed a contract to co-promote Pfizer’s pneumococcal vaccine Prevenar 13 for adults in Korea.

The latest contract represents the expansion of their partnership from local distribution of the world’s top-selling bacterial vaccine to joint marketing and sales in Korea.

Under the new contract, the Korean unit of U.S. Pfizer will be responsible for importing, promotion and marketing of the vaccine, and CKD will jointly conduct marketing and sales of Prevenar 13, while it continues to distribute the product across Korea.

Prevenar 13 prevents a first episode of vaccine-type community-acquired pneumonia in children and adults. It is administered once for adults aged 18 years and over.

CKD began to sell the vaccine in Korea late last year and reported 9.07 billion won in first-quarter sales from Prevenar, which already became a major source of cash flow for the company after diabetes drug Januvia (27.8 billion won, MSD), CKD Gliatilin to improve brain activity (10.6 billion won, Italifamaco), hypertension drug Dilatrend (10.6 billion won, Roche), dyslipidemia drug Lipilou (9.2 billion won).

CKD recently said its consolidated first-quarter operating profit grew 12.1 percent on-year to 18.81 billion won over sales of 218.54 billion won, up 4.2 percent from a year ago.

Shares of Chong Kun Dang on Monday closed at 112,000 won, unchanged from the previous session.

By Kim Hye-soon and Minu Kim

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