The Vietnamese pharmaceutical market is emerging as one of the more promising in the Asia Pacific region, despite being placed in the eleventh position in BMI’s Business Environment Rankings for Q308 that assesses 14 key regional countries. Over our forecast period through to 2012 we expect Vietnam to improve its placing as the market matures, possibly overtaking the Philippines and Malaysia. Its main attraction is the expected double-digit growth over the next five years, despite the fact that Vietnam continues to be criticised over inadequate intellectual property rights (IPRs) protection and a tough pricing environment.

Nevertheless, opportunities are increasingly being recognised by foreign players and the operating environment has been improved by the 2007 entry of Vietnam in the World Trade Organisation (WTO). German Stada, for example, has operated a local manufacturing partnership since 2002 with the most recent foreign player being Malaysian drugmaker YSP Southeast Asia Holdings. In June 2008 YSP revealed that it will spend up to US$12mn on a manufacturing plant in Vietnam, which is expected to start production before the end of 2009. Around the same time, local producer Pymerpharco Joint Stock Co announced the opening of the US$11.5mn intravenous drugs production facility as well as a partnership with Stada Vietnam for the production of oral antibiotic Cefdinir (omnicef). In the meantime, the local industry is facing various challenges posed by rising production costs, currency fluctuations and inflation.

To this end, Bind Dinh Pharmaceutical and Medical Equipment Company (Bidiphar) is aiming to boost exports in the hope that they could offset the increased cost of production. The firm hopes to get GMP certification for additional production facilities before the end of 2008, thereby facilitating an increased profile in Western Europe and the US. The immediate prospects for Vietnam’s pharmaceutical market are judged as being of mixed fortune following the removal of the three-month price freeze from the start of July 2008. The freeze, imposed by the Ministry of Health due to complaints from patients and healthcare providers over rising wholesaler prices at the start of the year, can possibly result in lower volume sales. Consequently, BMI is holding its projections for the time being until the exact impact of the changes can be better assessed.