The Manager of the Cegedim analysis and market research company, Petru Craciun, said this evolution is due to the drop in purchasing power of individuals, as well as to the decline in prescribed medication prices.
Cutting prices on drugs, which went into effect as of 1 April, will put a brake on market growth. According to Cegedim, the producer price for prescription drugs fell 11.6 percent and distributor prices by 7.7 percent. Considering the drop in prices, volumes will make the difference.
“The impact of this drop in prices is different from one company to another, but we believe that the reaction of sellers in terms of volume will make a bigger difference than price fluctuations,” Craciun told Business Standard. For the whole of 2009, Cegedim estimates a decline in volume and stagnation in value on the pharmaceutical market, due to the evolution of the exchange rate.
