China's pharma market expected to see strong growth

China’s pharmaceutical market is expected to see strong growth throughout this year and next thanks to its growing reputation within the industry.

Findings from the CPhI Annual Report show that China has seen a significant jump across ‘API manufacturing’, ‘innovation potential’, ‘competitiveness’ and ‘finished product manufacturing’ in the last year, suggesting that the country’s efforts to align standards closer to European and US FDA standards have been recognised.

The change in perception is believed to be in reaction to reformation efforts by the National Medical Products Administration (NMPA) and an improvement in quality over the past five years.

The analysis was released ahead of CPhI & P-MEC China, set to take place at the Shanghai International Expo Centre (SNIEC) 18-20 June.

Marie Lagrenée, brand manager at CPhI & P-MEC China, said: “The event is undergoing a tremendously successful period with attendee growth and exhibitor numbers rising extremely quickly to 3,200. This has been driven by ingredients and finished dosage manufacturing increasing, alongside the boom in the domestic biotech industry, but the opportunities here are now extremely diverse and we expect to see international interest rise accordingly. In response, we have introduced more internationally focused content to help navigate this burgeoning market, exploring diverse topics from how to launch new products in China to taking advantage of domestic manufacturing.”

This year, the show is expected to have its most international event to date with more 50,000 visitors from over 120 countries.

A key feature in 2019 are the free-to-attend international content workshops and panel debates running throughout the three days, with the agenda covering topics ranging from ‘conducting business in China’ through to exploring ‘how international and domestic manufacturers can collaborate to improve quality’. In total, the event will include some 100 sessions and more than 50 seminars.

Trends running throughout the sessions include the increased opportunities in the biopharma space as well as an increasing number of global pharma looking to outsource their manufacturing to Chinese CDMOs or expand in the China.

“It is an extremely dynamic time for pharma in China with the reformation and the realignment of the NMPA evidently paying dividends when it comes to China’s reputation internationally. With an increasing number of international pharma companies opting to use Chinese CDMOs or exploring new business opportunities within the country, I anticipate the growth of the Chinese economy to continue to be exponential. We look forward to an extremely vibrant event and even more booming year for Chinese pharma. That is addition to the world’s fastest growing domestic market”, commented Lagrenée.