China's COVID-19 Vaccine Output To Hit 3 Billion By Year-End: Official

"In the second half of this year, we are fully capable of meeting our own demand," Zheng Zhongwei said.

China's will likely have produced 3 billion doses of COVID-19 vaccines by the end of the year, a National Health Commission official said on Saturday. Zheng Zhongwei, who also heads a team coordinating the country's COVID-19 vaccine development projects, made the comment during an industry event in the city of Chengdu in southwestern China's Sichuan province. "In the second half of this year, we are fully capable of meeting our own demand," Zheng said. Though manufacturers are rapidly expanding production capacity, it is unclear if output has risen as fast. Production tripled from Feb. 1 through late March to 5 million doses a day, the government said its most recent update.