After a long period of strong US market dominance, the UK, and Europe as a whole, are facing increasing competition from emerging economies, such as China, Brazil and India.
From 2003–2007, the UK was ranked as the fifth or sixth nation in the worldwide pharmaceutical market, but has since fallen to 10th position. China has remained one of the strongest growing countries in the world throughout the recession.
Figure 1 – Global pharmaceutical top markets, 2009 and 2011
The UK places itself amongst the top 10 of global pharmaceutical markets, but has slipped from sixth in 2007 to 10th position in 2011.
| Country |
Rank |
$ (Mill) |
Growth
(%) |
Rank |
$ (Mill) |
Growth (%) |
|---|
| United States |
1 |
322,290 |
3 |
1 |
301,095 |
6 |
|---|
| Japan |
2 |
111,642 |
16 |
2 |
89,865 |
17 |
|---|
| China |
3 |
66,805 |
22 |
3 |
45,261 |
24 |
|---|
| Germany |
4 |
44,916 |
7 |
4 |
41,287 |
-2 |
|---|
| France |
5 |
41,197 |
6 |
5 |
40,452 |
-5 |
|---|
| Brazil |
6 |
28,465 |
23 |
10 |
17,629 |
8 |
|---|
| Italy |
7 |
28,357 |
7 |
6 |
27,085 |
-1 |
|---|
| Spain |
8 |
22,679 |
2 |
7 |
22,722 |
1 |
|---|
| Canada |
9 |
22,294 |
3 |
9 |
19,143 |
0 |
|---|
| United Kingdom |
10 |
21,564 |
6 |
8 |
19,830 |
-11 |
|---|
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Figure 2 – Global pharmaceutical market forecast, 2009-2014
The value of the global pharmaceutical market is expected to grow by 5–7% in 2011 to US$880 billion, compared with a 4–5% pace in 2010, according to IMS Health. The breakdown of these figures by geographical area is shown in the graph below.
Source: IMS Health Market Prognoses, March 2010.
Total Unaudited and Audited Global Pharmaceutical Market By Region (PDF, 16KB)
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Figure 3 – Market share for products launched in the last five years, 2009
The chart below is a measure of uptake for new medicines. Although the UK has traditionally been seen as an early launch market, the share of the market attributable to products launched in the previous five years is lower than most comparable countries.
Source: IMS Health World Review Analyst 2010
www.imshealth.com
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Figure 4 – Medicines expenditure per person in various countries, annual average 2011
The UK’s medicines expenditure per head is less than in other comparable countries. The UK medicines expenditure per head was £271 in 2010 compared to, for example, the equivalent of £375 on average in Sweden that same year.
Sources:
OHE. Figures based on Market Statistics IMS World Review, 2012 Edition.
www.imshealth.com
Figure 5 – Medicines expenditure as a percentage of GDP 2011
The UK spends less on medicines than other comparable countries. The graph below shows medicines expenditure as a percentage of GDP.
Sources:
IMS Health World Review Analyst 2012. OECD Health Database. All data accessed March 2012
www.imshealth.com
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