Pharmaceutical industry in the mainland China is, undoubtedly, one of the fast emerging markets in the world. Growing at a pace of more than 12 per cent per annum, the medicine market of the Asian tiger is set to become the fifth largest in the next five years.
The unbridled growth of the industry is attributed to a number of factors. The sheer size of population is considered one of the prime drivers of growth in this sector. This, coupled with China's entry into WTO, modernization of the regulatory mechanism, restructuring of the industry and trade, etc have had a direct impact on the current boom, analysts observe.
Figures show that in the first 3 quarters of 2003, China's pharmaceutical production increased by 20% and sales increased 17.2%. The total output of the drugs and pharmaceuticals registered around 20 per cent increase to US$ 46.84 billion from the previous year in 2003. Exports from the mainland China have witnessed a year-on-year increase of 24.4 per cent amounting to US$4.3bn and the total product sales income increased by 17.05 per cent to US$35.5bn.
Sales of medicines in China are forecast to reach $24 billion by 2010, at which point China will be the fifth-largest medicine market in the world after the USA, Japan, Germany and France. Basic pharmaceuticals are the mainstay of the industry in China. China is now the world's second-largest producer of basic medicines, and the largest producer and exporter country of penicillin, beta-lactam and vitamins. Chinese output of basic pharmaceuticals reached 562,000 units in 2002, an annual rise of 11 per cent, and made up 22 per cent of global sales. Exports in this sector increased by 28% to $2.99 billion, and accounted for 52 per cent of China's total pharmaceutical exports.
Traditional Chinese Medicine (TCM) offers around 2,000 kinds of herbal medicine and 3,300 other traditional remedies. Experts predict that demand for traditional medicines in African and Arabian countries will increase by 10-20 per cent annually for the next 5-10 years, and that sales in these countries will reach $10 - 20 billion. By the same reckoning, global sales of traditional medicines will reach $200 - 300 billion.
The pharmaceutical equipment sector grew faster than average, 28 per cent in 2002-03. More than 11,000 types of medical equipment are manufactured in China. These include computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) equipment.
The significance of a high profile trade event in chemicals and pharmaceuticals like CPhI China should be viewed in this context. Started in 2001, CPhI China has emerged as one of the best meeting points for international pharma-chemical decision makers to meet with the Chinese industry. Its visitor profile has been increasing quite dramatically, over the years.
Most recently, CPhI China 2004 attracted 12.985 pharma professionals from China and abroad: an increase of 21% in visitor numbers compared to 2003, site official sources. Without doubt, the event is becoming a global advertising spot for the pharma industry, especially for those who have an established presence in Asia and Pacific regions.
The fifth edition of CPhI China will be held at Shanghai Everbright Convention & Exhibition Center (SECEC) from 14th to 16th June 2005. The city of Shanghai is one of the centers of busiest commercial activity in the central-eastern China.