The domestic generic drug market may touch USD 27.9 billion by 2020 from the current USD 13.1 billion on the back of USFDA approvals to Indian pharma firms and many drugs losing their patent status, says a study. Generics would account for 85 per cent share in the domestic pharma market by 2020, fuelled by cheap labour, patent cliff of blockbuster drugs and prevalence of lifestyle diseases, according to the study by industry body Assocham and market research firm RNCOS. The sector is likely to benefit from USFDA approvals to Indian pharma firms as 21 drugs lose patent status by 2019, it said.
Generic drugs account for 75 percent of the domestic pharmaceutical market by value. Drugs for cholesterol control, pain management, anti-coagulant, respiratory problems, liver disorders, depression and lipid regulators are highly prevalent in the global market. Recently, Sun Pharma got USFDA nod to manufacture generic hydocodone bitartate with acetaminophen (APAP) tablets.
It is a narcotic analgesic indicated in the treatment of moderate to moderately severe pain of acute, chronic, or post-operative types, the study pointed out. However, it said that the influence of physicians in India in terms of prescribing branded medicines are among the factors that have limited the consumption of unbranded drugs in the domestic market. Thus, generic drug majors like Sun Pharma, Lupin and Dr Reddy's have been targetting international markets.
"With key initiatives announced by the Modi Government to include price control policies and the revision of Jan Aushadhi campaign, the market is likely to show a notable incline in the penetration of unbranded drugs," Assocham Secretary General D S Rawat said. The overall domestic pharma market was valued at USD 15.4 billion in 2014 and is expected to expand at a CAGR of 13.3 percent to USD 32.7 billion by 2020, the study noted. Driven by favourable demographics including growing ageing population, increasing lifestyle diseases, steep growth in disposable incomes and increasing penetration of domestic drug players in the global market, India is likely to be among the top three pharmaceutical markets globally by incremental growth and sixth largest in absolute size, it said.
The major export markets for the country's pharmaceutical products are the Americas (US and South America), Europe, China, Japan and Africa. The US accounts for nearly 28 percent of Indian pharmaceutical exports, followed by the European Union (18 percent) and Africa (17 percent). The pharma exports to the US market are high due to the large number of approvals from the USFDA.
India has been the third-largest exporter of drugs to the US market by volume and has 370 FDA-approved manufacturing facilities outside the US, which is the second largest in the world, the study said. India ranks fourth in pharmaceutical production in the world with an output of about USD 31 billion in 2014. The country has a 1.4 percent share by value and 10 per cent by volume in the global pharma industry.
It exports drugs to more than 200 countries.
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