The pharmaceutical market in the country was up 14% YOY in 2013, and reached 36 billion UAH, which is the total maximum for the last six years, the Information-Analytical Bulletin of the Cabinet of Ministers of Ukraine reports.
According to industry experts, the market development was affected by medication consumption growth and a shifting demand from cheap to more expensive drugs, which indicates the growth of welfare of Ukrainian citizens.
The pharmacy chains sold 1.3 billion packs of medicines for 30.5 billion UAH at year-end of 2013. Also, 65% of drugs sold last year were domestic production. It should be noted that the domestic pharmaceutical industry produces over one third of the 13,000 items registered in the country. In 2013 an average cost per unit of medicine of Ukrainian origin amounted to 10.9 UAH, foreign origin - 47.9 UAH.
The top ten pharmaceutical manufacturers of Ukraine, along with international companies included four Ukrainian companies Farmak, Darnitsa, Arterium Corporation, Group of Companies Zdorovye.
According to government analysts, over the past three years, considerable attention from the government to domestic pharmaceutical industry has helped develop its economic potential. And today all the objective and subjective conditions exist for domestic pharmaceutical industry to become an engine of economic growth on a par with agriculture and IT-industry.
