Biotech Values

[DewDiligence]

China Will Be Sanofi’s Second-Largest Market by 2016

http://sg.news.yahoo.com/china-sanofis-2nd-largest-market-5-years-111822582.html

›May 12, 2011
By David Holmes

BEIJING, May 12 (Reuters) - Growth in the consumer health business and in vaccines for flu and other diseases will help propel China to become the second-largest market for French drugmaker Sanofi SA within five years, Chief Executive Mike Viehbacher said Thursday.

Sanofi, which launched its five-in-one children's vaccine Pentaxim in China on Wednesday, expects about 100 million euros ($139.7 million) in consumer health revenue in China this year amid 3 billion euros in consumer health sales worldwide, Viehbacher said at a briefing with reporters.

The Paris-based pharmaceuticals company is building a facility in Shenzhen, southern China to produce flu vaccine for the 2013 flu season, and expects to launch a dengue vaccine in China in 2014 or 2015, Viehbacher said. Sanofi also sees opportunities in China for vaccines for cervical cancer and other illnesses.

"We're seeing national immunisation programmes get more budget" in China, he said.

Opportunities in China are being fuelled by the urbanisation of the country's population which is increasing health-care resources available to Chinese [no kidding].

"The Chinese government has made health a priority, expanded access to vaccines, improved reimbursement for health care, and we have responded by increasing our investment in China, in manufacturing, research and development," Viehbacher said.

Sanofi's $521 million acquisition of the Chinese firm BMP Sunstone in October [#msg-56034798] provided it Chinese channels to sell consumer health products, such as cough and cold medication.

Last month Sanofi completed its $20 billion takeover of U.S. biotechnology company Genzyme Corp , but Viehbacher said he isn't planning further blockbuster acquisitions.

"Post-Genzyme, we're not looking to do major deals like that," he said. "But I would expect to still see the level of around 1 to 2 billion euros per year on acquisitions that we'll do that can bolt onto our platforms."

Sanofi already derives about a third of its revenue from emerging markets, much more than its competitors. The drugmaker sells more in emerging markets than it does in Europe or the United States.

In addition to emerging markets which include China, Sanofi sees vaccines, diabetes and rare diseases as growth areas in the coming years, Viehbacher said in an interview at the Reuters Health Summit earlier this week.‹