Pharmaceutical exports, a key component of the country’s foreign trade, increased 4 % in August compared to the year-earlier period, thus reversing the trend of negative growth witnessed in the first four months of this fiscal.
It is a big positive for the industry, Chairman of Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil) Madan Mohan Reddy said, expressing confidence of the pick-up to gain momentum.
“This year, we can expect 3-5% increase in the exports,” he said in an interaction ahead of the 13th annual meeting of the Council here on Saturday.
During April-July, pharma exports declined by 7.9%. With the performance in August, the decline during the first five months is 4.2% compared to the same period last year, Mr. Reddy and Pharmexcil Director General Udaya Bhaskar told the presspersons.
On the reasons for the decline, the Council Chairman said there were some issues on the raw material availability front during the transition to the new Goods and Services Tax regime. Business opportunities-wise, there was absolutely no problem for exports, he added.
Mr. Reddy, who is the Director of Aurobindo Pharma, said in the coming months, many companies were expected to get approvals from foreign regulators such as the USFDA for new products. Some of them stood to benefit from the first to file norm under which a period of exclusivity is available.
Mr. Bhaskar said pharma exports in 2016-17 were $16.84 billion, a marginal decline compared to the previous year. The exporters faced pricing pressure from September 2016 in the U.S. market. Moreover, the performance in 2015-16 was also influenced due to two blockbuster products going off patent.
As regards the regulatory issues, Mr. Reddy said most of the companies have addressed them. “There is also a lot of improvement in their way of working,” he added.
The Council, in association with the government, is working on evolving measures aimed at reducing import dependence and enhanced focus on emerging markets such as Africa and Latin America.