Pharma exports report around 10% growth in April

Bringing relief to the pharma industry and exporters, the exports of medicinal drugs and pharmaceuticals have grown by almost 10 percent in the first month of the current fiscal year 2022-23. Imports, on the other hand, too grew but only 4.35 percent. These figures are according to the quick estimates of the Department of Commerce and Industry.

Exports of drugs and pharmaceuticals from India for the month of April 2022 have witnessed a growth of about 9.49 percent at $2.07 billion against $1.9 billion during the same month of the last fiscal year.

Pharmaceutical imports during the same month stood at $710 million, with a growth of 4.35 percent from the $681 million imports during the same month of the previous fiscal year.

Compared to the exports during March, the April exports showed significant growth.

According to the preliminary estimates of the Department of Commerce and Industry in April, Exports during March 2022 have reported a 4.2 percent growth to $2.39 billion as compared to the exports of $2.29 billion in the same period of the previous fiscal year.

According to the preliminary estimates, the exports of drugs and pharmaceuticals for the fiscal year 2021-22 witnessed a meager growth of 0.66 percent at $24.6 billion against the exports of $24.44 billion during the previous fiscal year, the Department of Commerce and Industry.

The union government of India was targeting an annual export of $29 billion during the fiscal. Still, the international market conditions were not in tune to support that good growth, according to experts.

The union government of India has recently claimed that the Indian pharma exports witnessed a robust growth of 103 percent since 2013-14, from Rs. 90,415 crore in 2013-14 to more than double itself to Rs. 1,83,422 crore in 2021-22. The exports achieved in 2021-22 are the pharma sector’s best export performance ever.

Union minister of commerce and industry, consumer affairs, food, public distribution, and textiles, Mr. Piyush Goyal, has highlighted the achievement on his Twitter account and praised the honorable union Prime Minister of India, Mr. Narendra Modi, for the feat. The national exports have grown by almost $10 billion in eight years.

It claimed that the pharma exports in 2021-22 have sustained a positive growth despite the global trade disruptions and a worldwide drop in demand for Covid-related medicines. The trade balance has continued to be in India’sIndia’s favor with a surplus of $15.18 billion.

Indian pharma companies were enabled by their price competitiveness and good quality for having made a global mark, with 60 percent of the world’s vaccines and 20% of generic medicines coming from India.

“Behind India’sIndia’s pharma success story is our world-class manufacturing excellence, robust infrastructure, cost-competitiveness, trained human capital, and innovation. The current market size of the Indian pharmaceutical industry is around $50 billion,” added to the Ministry of Commerce recently.

The share of pharmaceuticals and drugs in India’sIndia’s total global exports is 5.92%. Formulations and biologicals have continued to account for 73.31% of total exports, followed by Bulk drugs and drug intermediates with exports of $4.44 billion. India’sIndia’s top 5 pharma export destinations are the United States, United Kingdom, South Africa, Russia, and Nigeria.

It is also noteworthy that around 55 percent of India’sIndia’s pharma exports cater to highly regulated markets. Indian pharma companies also have a substantial share in the prescription market in the United States and European Union. The most significant number of United States Food and Drug Administration (US FDA) approved plants outside the United States is in India.

In 2020-21, Indian drugs and pharmaceuticals registered a sharp growth despite the Covid despair, achieving a total export of $24.4 billion with a year-on-year increase of 18%.