Global pharma sales to top $1 trillion by 2014
GLOBAL pharmaceutical sales are expected to reach $1.1 trillion (£717bn) in 2014 as growth in emerging markets helps offset the impact of generic competition for many of the world’s top selling drugs, according to a forecast by IMS Health.
The five per cent to eight per cent compound annual growth rate for prescription drugs expected over the next five years translates into sales growth of nearly $300bn, IMS said.
Worldwide pharmaceutical sales growth of four to six per cent is expected this year, which is in line with the previous forecast by IMS, a leading provider of prescription drug data. But that represents a decline from the seven per cent growth to $837bn seen in 2009.
Factors contributing to slower growth in 2010 are a larger impact from US patent expirations, price cuts in Japan, and the effect in Europe of publicly funded healthcare budgets being cut.