India plays an important role in the global pharmaceuticals and vaccine industry. It is the largest provider of generic medicines globally. The country has a share of 20% in the global supply volume and contributes to around 60% of the global vaccines. India ranks third in the world in terms of volume and is the fourteenth largest in terms of value. Key segments of the Indian pharmaceutical industry are OTC medicines, Generics, APIs, Vaccines, Biosimilars, and Custom Research Manufacturing (CRM).
India is the world leader in supplying vaccines like DPT, BCG, and Measles. It also has the highest number of US FDA-approved plants outside of the USA. The key USP of the Indian Pharmaceutical Industry is affordable price and high quality and because of this, India is also sometimes called the “Pharmacy of the World”. The total annual turnover of the industry was US$ 49.78 billion in FY23 and US$ 41.68 billion in 2021-22. One of the major achievements of the Indian Pharma Industry is access to affordable HIV drugs. Additionally, India is one of the largest suppliers of low-cost vaccines to the world.
India majorly exports drug formulations & biologicals, and these products contribute to about 75% of the total pharmaceutical exports out of India.
EXPORT TREND
India’s share of pharmaceuticals and drugs in the global market is 5.71%. Formulations and Biologics constituted the major portion of India’s exports with a share of 72.54% followed by drug intermediates and bulk drugs. In FY23, the exports of drugs and pharmaceuticals stood at US$ 25.39 billion. During 2021-22, the country exported pharma products worth US$ 24.59 billion, while in 2020-21, the exports grew at 18% YoY to US$ 24.44 billion. This robust performance was achieved despite the global supply chain disruptions, lockdowns, and subdued manufacturing. In April-July 2023, India exported US$ 8.71 billion worth of drugs and pharmaceuticals, a 3.99% increase from US$ 8.38 billion in April-July 2022. The USA, Belgium, South Africa, the UK, and Brazil were India’s top five export destinations in FY23. India played a key role during the COVID-19 pandemic and demonstrated its ability to be a consistent and reliable pharma supplier to the world even during times of crisis.
India has the highest number of United States Food and Drug Administration (USFDA) compliant companies with plants outside of the USA. About eight out of 20 global generic companies are from India and over 55% of the exports from the country are to the highly regulated markets. As the country is the biggest vaccine exporter, about 65-70% of the World Health Organization (WHO) vaccine requirements are sourced from India.