China To Form 10 Major Pharma Groups By 2000

China is to establish 10 major pharmaceutical groupings by the year 2000, according to unnamed sources in the State Pharmaceutical Administration. It is understood that the plan aims to transform the Chinese drug industry from the current multiplicity of small and often inefficient companies into larger and more competitive groups with enlarged production capacity. The Chinese authorities have been trying to promote mergers in the industry between the less competitive companies for some time.

The SPA is quoted as listing the country's leading 50 drugmakers based on their 1995 performance. This list actually includes 44 medicine producers, three medical instrument manufacturers, two medical packaging firms and one maker of medical machinery. The top three drug companies are Xian-Janssen, a joint venture between China and the Belgian subsidiary of Johnson & Johnson, Zhuhai SEZ Lizhu Pharmaceutical Group and the Shandong Qilu Pharmaceutical Factory. Xian-Janssen's 1995 profits for 1995 reached 480 million renminbi ($57.6 million), an increase of 54.8% over 1994, on sales of 1.2 billion renminbi.