European Sales of OTC Analgesics To 2000

Western European sales of over-the-counter analgesics should grow from $1.4 billion in 1993 to over $2 billion by 2000, says a new study from Frost & Sullivan. However, this market is relatively mature, and growth for these products will be lower than for European OTCs as a whole.

The leading markets for OTC analgesics are Germany with a 30.6% share, France at 22.5% and the UK on 18.9%. These positions are not expected to change by 2000, although France could lose revenue share unless it changes its market structure, as semi-ethical analgesics there are now about half the price of OTCs.

Aspirin, the market leader with a 37.1% share in 1993, is expected to account for 39.8% by 2000, while combination analgesics will to fall from 29.1% of the market to 25.2%. Paracetamol is expected to drop only slightly from its 25.1% market share to 24.2%, while ibuprofen is forecast to rise from 7.7% to 9.1%, and ketoprofen to grow from 0.2% to 1.6%.