Brazil set to overtake Mexico in the South and Central American API market by 2020

The current global economic crisis has negatively affected the South and Central American active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) market leading to a drastic reduction in its growth, according to a new report from Global Markets Direct. The economic crisis has necessitated the need for the governments to reduce their expenditure even in the healthcare sector.

Therefore, in an attempt to realize significant savings in health care expenditure, there is a shift away from the high-priced innovative drugs in Mexico and Brazil. This has resulted in a significant slowdown in the revenue growth of the South and Central American API market. In 2009, the South and Central American API market is set to grow at a rate of around 2%.

The Brazilian API sector, the second largest market in South and Central America, is set to overtake Mexico in its revenue share by 2020. The Brazilian API market is characterized by an emerging biotechnology API product segment, which is the fastest growing in the South and Central American market. Adding to this, the Brazilian pharmaceutical industry is strong and growing at a healthier rate than Mexico and other countries. This higher growth is set to enable the Brazilian API market to gain revenue share during the period 2008-2020. By 2020, Brazil is expected to hold a revenue share of around 30% and Mexico around 28%, the report notes.

Biotech APIs to drive overall growth

The biotech API market in South and Central America is geared for a higher growth, which is set to drive the overall growth of the API market. The increasing demand for biological drugs is boosting the need for the biotech API in the market place. In addition, the technological advancement in the pharmaceutical industry is paving the way for newer biotechnology drugs. This will boost the growth of the biotech API market making it grow at a rate which is significantly higher than the synthetic API market. The biotech API market is expected to expand at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 7% from 2008 to 2020, according to the report.