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Generic Tamiflu at select chemists by mid September (about 300 chemists across India have licence to sell Schedule X drugs)
August 29
Antiviral drug Oseltamivir, used in treating swine flu, is likely to be available at select chemists across India by mid-Sept 2009. The Government of India is set to issue a notification permitting retail sales of Oseltamivir under Schedule X. Companies such as Roche, Hetero, Cipla, Strides, Ranbaxy and Natco would be able to sell the drug through select chemists once the notification is issued. There are about 300-odd chemists across the country having the licence to sell Schedule X drugs.
Source: Business Line
Poor rains hit drug sales too(with retail sales of medicines in India growing by just 8.9 percent in Jul 2009)
August 28
Market research and consultancy firm ORG IMS has stated that retail sales of medicines in India grew by just 8.9 percent year- on-year in July 2009 on account of poor rains. The retail sales had grown by 18.3 percent for Jun 2009, with chemists stocking more drugs in anticipation of good sales during the rainy season. According to ORG IMS, sales of anti-infectives, cough and cold medicines, anti-diarrheals, anti-asthmatics and anti-inflammatory medicines reduced during Jul 2009. The sale of such medicines normally increases during the monsoon season. The Rs. 360 billion domestic drug industry has been showing a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 14-15 percent during the past few years.
Source: Economic Times
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Pharma retail may grow if FDI norms are eased: Survey (the Indian organised pharma retail market size has the potential to grow to $9 billion by the year 2011)
August 17
A report titled India Retail Research 2009 has said that the Indian organised pharma retail market size has the potential to grow to $9 billion by the year 2011 if foreign direct investment (FDI) norms in pharmacy retailing in India are relaxed. The report says that Indian pharmacy retail is growing at 20-25 percent annually. At present, the pharmacy retail market size in India is estimated to be $4.5 billion and is dominated by 12-15 big pharmaceutical companies. Apollo Pharmacy, Religare Wellness, Lifespring, Medplus, 98.4, Medicine Shoppe, Dial for Health and LifeKen are the major pharmaceutical companies in the pharmacy retail chain. There are more than 3,500 organised retail pharmacy outlets in India. This is expected to grow nearly three times to 10,000 outlets by the end of 2010.
Source: Economic Times
Incremental pharma innovation in patent regime to benefit local firms (says a study by USIBC)
August 2
Incremental pharma innovations in Indian patent regime would favour the domestic pharmaceutical companies as per the US India Business Council (USIBC) study. Incremental pharma market would be worth $7 billion out of $20 billion Indian pharmaceutical market by 2015, the USIBC study indicated. About 76.4 percent of India's pharmaceutical companies have introduced incremental pharma innovations in recent years, of which only 37 percent have achieved breakthrough innovation, as per the data of the National Knowledge Commission.
Source: Financial Express
Wockhardt divested to infuse cash for its pharma chain (Wockhardt Hospitals is selling 10 hospital properties to Fortis Healthcare)
August 26
Habil Khorakiwala-promoted Wockhardt Hospitals is selling 10 hospital properties to Fortis Healthcare. This is likely to help Khorakiwala repay the Rs. 5 billion debt on Wockhardt Hospital's books. It would also give the promoters the much-needed cash to keep the lenders to Wockhardt Ltd, the pharma company, at bay. These 10 hospital properties, which had posted a turnover of Rs. 3 billion in 2008-2009, were contributing 85 percent of the hospital chain's total revenues.
Source: Business Standard
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Ajanta, Medicago join hands for flu vaccine (to commercialise Medicago's pandemic and seasonal influenza vaccines in India and other territories)
August 21
Ajanta Pharma has tied up with Medicago Inc of Canada to commercialise Medicago's pandemic and seasonal influenza vaccines in India and other territories. Medicago Inc works on its proprietary Virus-Like Particle-based technologies to develop vaccines. The company has developed vaccine candidate for the Influenza-A (H1N1) virus.
Source: Business Standard
Paras pharma ventures into lifestyle and wellness (and manufacture OTC drugs for these categories)
August 20
Paras Pharmaceuticals, which manufactures healthcare brands that include Moov and D'Cold and personal care brands that include Livon and Dermicool is seeking to enter into lifestyle and wellness categories. Paras is likely to manufacture over-the-counter (OTC) drugs for these categories.
Source: Financial Chronicle
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Aurbindo to buy Trident for 1.35 billion INR (enabling it to enter the injectables market)
August 18
The board of Aurobindo Pharmaceutical Ltd (APL) of Hyderabad is planning to acquire Trident Life Sciences (TLS) for Rs1.35 billion, of which Rs. 390 million would be equity . The acquisition is likely to enable APL to enter the injectables market as TLS is setting up a liquid injectables facility at Medak district near Hyderabad to be commissioned by Apr 2011. The proposed facility is likely to manufacture glass vials for lyophilised sterile powder and liquids, ampoules, blow-filled syringes and pre-filled syringes. TLS was founded in 2004 and has demerged its core Clinical Research Organisation vertical into a separate entity.
Source: Economic Times
Indian generics profit from Glaxo expiry(US FDA has given final approvals for the reverse engineered or generic versions of the drug)
August 18
Indian generic pharma companies have benefited from the patent expiry of GlaxoSmithKline Plc's anti-migraine drug brand, Imitrex. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has given final approvals for the reverse engineered or generic versions of the drug made by Indian pharmaceutical companies. The final approvals for generic versions of the drug, named sumatriptan succinate tablets, are for Indian companies such as Orchid Healthcare, Aurobindo Pharma, Sun Pharmaceuticals, Ranbaxy Laboratories and Dr Reddy's Laboratories. The approvals are for various versions of the tablet with dosages of 25 mg, 50 mg and 100 mg. Annual sales for Imitrex is estimated at $1 billion in the US in 2008.
Source: Business Standard
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Big pharma companies join outsourcing queue (India emerging as preferred destination for outsourcing drug production)
August 17
India is emerging as preferred destination for outsourcing drug production. Major global pharma companies are outsourcing their drug production to Indian pharma companies. Over 80 percent of the 38 big and medium-sized pharma companies across the world rated India higher than China, Eastern Europe, Puerto Rico, Singapore and Ireland, according to a report by Ernst & Young (E&Y) and the Organisation of Pharmaceutical Producers in India. E&Y estimates the Indian drug production outsourcing industry to grow over 43 percent annually. India offers a significant cost- quality proposition in end-to-end research and development, with potential savings of over 60 percent as compared to the US, as well as a strong supply of skilled manpower and capital efficiency. India has about 100 manufacturing facilities approved by the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA).
Source: Business Standard
Sun Pharma and Forest Laboratories enter agreement for Lexapro
August 9
Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd (SPIL) has arrived at an agreement with Forest Laboratories over a patent infringement dispute on its top-selling antidepressant drug Lexapro. Under the settlement, SPIL is likely to get the patents for the drug through its US subsidiary, Caraco Pharmaceutical Laboratories, when other generic versions of Lexapro are available.
Source: Capital Market
Sanofi:Acquisitions and deals
August 3 and August 7
Sanofi-Aventis of France has acquired an 80 percent stake in vaccine manufacturer Shantha Biotechnics Ltd (SBL) of Hyderabad from Merieux Alliance of France. Sanofi-Aventis acquired the majority stake in SBL through its vaccine subsidiary, Sanofi Pasteur, for $783 million.
Merck & Co has signed an agreement with Sanofi-aventis for selling 50 percent stake in its joint venture Merial Ltd. Under the agreement, Sanofi-aventis will acquire the stake for $4 billion in cash. Merial is engaged in animal healthcare.
Source: Financial Express
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