In FY23, pharmaceutical exports increased by 3.25 percent to $25.3 billion. Export growth in 2021–2022 was nearly flat at 0.71 percent, or $24.62 billion. The US, Canada, and Mexico (NAFTA), then Europe, received a significant portion of exports.
According to R Uday Bhaskar, Director-General of the Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council (Pharmexcil), “I think this is a reasonably good performance in exports in view of the challenges faced by the industry in the form of the Ukraine crisis and slowdown in the growth of the global generics space.”
Pharmexcil data show that pharmaceutical imports dropped by 10.5% previous fiscal year to $8 billion from just over $9 billion in FY22. According to Bhaskar, one of the causes of the decline in imports is the rise in API manufacturing by domestic players.
The tendency might persist as some output is anticipated to start under the Aatmanirbhar Bharat initiatives as part of the output Linked Incentive (PLI) Scheme.
In the future, the product basket may also undergo some changes. The Indian pharmaceutical sector is working hard to transition from volume-based to value-based products. The growth of new markets like biosimilars is encouraging for exports, according to the director of a pharmaceutical company with headquarters in Hyderabad.
