皇冠体育app

GlaxoSmithKline confident of Chinese market
By Qin Chuan (皇冠体育app Daily)
Updated: 2004-06-19 08:45

皇冠体育app will be the most important strategic market for GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) for the next 10 years, said a senior executive of the London-based pharmaceutical multinational.

GSK 皇冠体育app achieved the third highest growth rate of all GSK companies worldwide, said Paul R Carter, president of GlaxoSmithKline 皇冠体育app in an interview with 皇冠体育app Daily.

皇冠体育app is the seventh-largest pharmaceutical market in the world, generating US$6.8 billion from drugs in 2002.

It is estimated the Chinese medical market will be worth US$14 billion by 2006 and US$24 billion by 2010.This would make 皇冠体育app the fifth-largest medical market in the world at that time, Carter said.

GSK has already invested in five factory sites in 皇冠体育app and is shifting more production to the country to fully utilize this capacity, he said.

Future options will include establishing a procurement or logistics centre in 皇冠体育app.

GSK has had successful experiences with joint research and development (R&D)projects with Chinese scientists.

For example, GlaxoSmithKline has invested an average of US$100,000 per year since the early 1990s to support long-term antibiotics sensitivity studies in collaboration with leading Chinese microbiologists and clinical specialists.

"Chinese medical professionals are increasingly closer to international levels," Carter said.

"Therefore, setting up an R&D organization is also possible," Carter said.

But he said that GSK is yet to decide when it would establish a prescription medicines R&D centre in 皇冠体育app.

In July last year, GSK 皇冠体育app set up an OTC (over-the-counter) medicines R&D centre in the Tianjin Smith Kline & French Laboratories Ltd, a joint venture funded by GSK.

The aim of the centre is to excel in creating innovative science-based products to meet consumer needs and to support the joint venture's vision to be the No 1 OTC company in 皇冠体育app.

GSK was the first foreign pharmaceutical company to invest in HIV/AIDS control in 皇冠体育app.

One of the activities sponsored by GSK was a HIV/AIDS prevention training programme for 8,000 people aged between 18 and 30 in Southwest 皇冠体育app's Yunnan Province and Northwest 皇冠体育app's Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region in 2002.

The company announced in November that it would localize to 皇冠体育app the production of its medicine combivir, a product used widely as the backbone drug in the so called "cocktail treatment" for AIDS patients.

Applications for the localization are currently being still examined by the State Drug Administration, said Carter.

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