Russian drug imports fell by 7.7% in value terms last year

Drug imports by Russia fell by 7.7% in value terms last year, mainly as a result of the low purchasing power of local consumers and the ever-growing share of generics, according to latest data from the Russian Ministry of Agriculture and some local analysts in the field of pharmaceuticals, reports The Pharma Letter’s local correspondent.

According to data of RNC Pharma, one of Russia’s leading pharma analytic agencies, last year imports of finished drugs to Russia amounted to 531 billion roubles ($8.1 billion). In volume terms, imports were equivalent to 1.87 billion packs.

Swiss pharma giant Novartis (NOVN: VX) was the biggest supplier of medicines to the Russian market in 2018, with its exports to Russia reaching 41.6 billion roubles.