AstraZeneca's China president Leon Wang, who was detained last month by Chinese authorities, is in touch with a lawyer but the company has very little information about the case, its CEO said on Tuesday.

The company believes Chinese authorities are probing allegations that two current and two former employees had illegally imported cancer drugs.

While it remains unclear why AstraZeneca China President Leon Wang has been detained, news of his arrest comes just days after it was reported that he was under investigation for alleged medical insurance fraud in the country.

AstraZeneca's CEO said on Tuesday that the company's China president Leon Wang, who last month was detained by Chinese authorities, has a lawyer he is in touch with, but "we have no information as a company".

Pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca said that the head of its China operations had been detained, after reports the firm was under investigation for potentially illegal data collection and drug imports.

AstraZeneca Plc is increasingly looking to the US for growth as its once fast-expanding China business faces challenges amid a probe that has battered the drugmaker’s share price.

AstraZeneca said on Wednesday its China president Leon Wang had been detained by Chinese authorities and, although it did not know the reason, it did not believe it was linked to a large health insurance fraud case involving the company.