Pharmaceutical market up 18%

The pharmaceutical market saw an 18% rise last year, to 4.6 billion RON (1.27 billion euros) according to data from the market researcher Cegedim. Drug consumption through drugstores, which stood at 3.47 billion RON (some 950 million euros) witnessed the highest growth level – standing at some 25% compared to 2004, while consumption in hospitals rose by a mere 0.2%. Sales through drugstores account for 75% of the total market. “The growth on the retail segment is due to the expansion of networks, as well as to the fact that the most significant increase was seen by the therapeutic segments, such as the cardiovascular system or the central nervous system treatment, for which drugs are mostly sold in drugstores,” stated Coca Cascaval, marketing manager of the company Antibiotice. These results reflect a growth exceeding initial estimates of the companies on the market, which expected an increase of no more than 10-15% in pharmaceutical consumption. The elimination of the 90% subsidy for a wide category of products, as well as the delay in debt payment by the state to companies on the market, which caused them liquidity problems, did not significantly hurt the growth of the pharmaceutical market. ZF