Shionogi's COVID-19 antiviral nabs Japanese approval to rival drugs from Pfizer, Merck

As the fight against COVID-19 rolls on, regulators in Japan have bestowed a green light on the country's first homegrown antiviral.

The win goes to local drugmaker Shionogi, which has clinched an emergency approval for its oral antiviral Xocova from Japan’s Ministry of Health, Labour and Welfare (MHLW) to treat SARS-CoV-2 infection. The nod triggers a supply contract for the Japanese government to buy 1 million Xocova courses from Shionogi, the company said in a release.