India’s pharma market to grow by 24% in five years

The pharmaceuticals market in India, valued at £13.9bn ($20bn) in 2015, is set to soar to £38.2bn ($55bn) by 2020, representing a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) of 22.4%, according to a report by GlobalData

The research and consulting firm’s latest report*, indicates that India’s rapidly growing generics market is the primary driver of the nation’s pharmaceutical sector, with sales expected to rise by nearly 84% to £18.1bn ($26.1bn) in 2016.

Generic drugs, with their low costs and easy accessibility, now dominate India’s pharmaceutical space, accounting for around 70% of the market, the report states.

Adam Dion, GlobalData’s senior industry analyst, said: "India supplies 20% of global generic medicines in terms of export volume, making the country the largest provider of generic medicines globally.

"Indeed, Indian pharmaceutical companies are now exporting to countries like Brazil, Mexico, South Africa, Russia and Japan and, according to India’s Ministry of Commerce and Industry, the nation’s pharmaceutical export segment has more than doubled from £5.4bn ($7.8bn) in 2008 to £11.4 ($16.5bn) in 2014."

Another driver of India’s pharmaceutical sector is the potentially lucrative biosimilars market, which is expected to increase to £27.8bn ($40bn) globally by 2020, as biologic treatments are introduced for diseases such as diabetes, cancer, multiple sclerosis, and rheumatoid arthritis, according to the report.