The main trends of the Ukrainian pharmaceutical market in January-June 2024 were the growth of sales in hryvnias, the shortage of personnel and the growth of demand in the segment of antipsychotics, antidepressants and sedatives, as well as the development of own brands of pharmacy chains, Yevhen Zayka, regional director of the Acino pharmaceutical company, told the agency.
Commenting on the development of the farm market in the first half of 2024 to the Interfax-Ukraine agency, he noted a 19% increase in sales in monetary terms, while the volume of sales in packages increased by only 3%.
According to Zayka, the main part of the increase in monetary terms is the price increase. In particular, the share of expensive medicines in the first half of the year was 87.7% in monetary terms, but their share in physical terms was 52.4%.
In addition, Zayka noted that in the first half of the year, the share of dietary supplements in the total volume of the market grew.
According to him, the cost of pharmaceutical production in January-June 2024 “increased significantly compared to the first half of 2023”, which was associated with an increase in personnel costs, prices for active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) and packaging materials.
Commenting on the work of pharmaceutical production in conditions of shortages and power outages, Zayka noted that in 2021 the company invested $0.5 million in generators that enable the plant to work during power outages.
At the same time, he focused on the constant increase in the cost of logistics “due to the lack of drivers.”
At the same time, commenting on cooperation with distributors and pharmacy chains, Zayka noted that “the consolidation of the pharmacy market continues, pharmacy chains are expanding the portfolios of their own brands, this certainly threatens the normal operation of the pharmaceutical market.”
“We are working to ensure that our interaction is mutually beneficial for both parties and, most importantly, for our patients,” he said.
At the same time, Zayka predicts that by the end of 2024, the growth of the pharmaceutical market of Ukraine may reach 18.6% in monetary terms and 2% in physical terms.
As reported with reference to the data of the company “Business Credit”, pharmacy sales in Ukraine in January-May 2024 increased in monetary terms by 13.87% compared to the same period in 2023 – to 80.159 billion UAH, in physical terms decreased by 4.2 % – up to 491.363 million packages. The weighted average price of pharmacy basket goods for this period was UAH 163.14, which is 18.86% more than for the same period in 2023.
At the same time, pharmacy sales of medicines in January-May 2024 amounted to UAH 62.827 billion, which is 13.72% more than in the same period of 2023, but in natural terms, pharmacy sales of medicines decreased by 4.45% – to 345.722 million packages. The weighted average retail price of medicinal products in January-May 2024 was UAH 181.73 per product unit, which is 19% more than a year earlier.
