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P.T. Jyothi Datta

Mumbai, Feb. 18 Recessionary trends notwithstanding, GlaxoSmithKline Pharmaceuticals is set to increase its field-force to support growth in its vaccines, oncology and other speciality segments.

The multinational drug maker expects to add another 200 people to its 2,250-strong sales and marketing team, GSK Pharma’s Senior Executive Director, Mr Mehernosh Kapadia, told Business Line.

The company is confident that the domestic pharmaceutical sector will grow at 12 per cent this year, despite the slowdown. GSK Pharma has in its guidance projected 10-11 per cent growth this year, he added. In 2012, the company would be tracking growth in line with market trends, he said.

Growth will be driven by the company’s new products, the priority range and lesser dependence on price control drugs that account for 28 per cent of its total sales. Though there are no indications that the local pharmaceutical market would be impacted significantly, he said, there was caution for any upheaval caused by the slowdown.

The company’s net profit for the three months ended December 31, 2008 more than doubled over the net profit clocked in the corresponding period last year, due to Rs 119 crore exceptional items from the sale of shares and other income from investments, a one-time gain, he said.

As the industry across the board battles a slowdown, he said, the company’s cost-base was already “pretty tight”. The company has been focussed on procurement efficiencies and investments only when required for growth, he said, adding that the field-force increase was part of this plan.

GSK Plc’s Chief Executive, Mr Andrew Witty, had in a recent address at Harvard Medical School said that the company planned to cut medicine prices in poor countries and invest about 20 per cent of its profit from such markets into healthcare infrastructure. Responding to whether these initiatives will be seen in India as well, Mr Kapadia indicated that these principles would be kept in mind locally as well. GSK Pharma sells its breast cancer drug Tykerb at half the global cost, he said.

The company has also entered into licensing deal in the quarter under review, with Daiichi Sankyo for hypertension drug Olmesartan, sold under the brandname Benitec.

It also has an agreement with Astellas for Micafungin, a critical care anti-fungal product. Going forward, these alliances, besides an earlier agreement with Roche for cardiac drug Carvedilol will contribute reasonably to growth, he added.

For the year ended December 31, 2008, GSK Pharma posted a net profit of Rs 576 crore compared with a net profit of Rs 537 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year. It clocked a total income of Rs 1,708 crore for the year under review against Rs 1,621 crore in the corresponding period last year.

GSK Pharma’s shares were marginally up on the BSE at Rs 1,196 on Wednesday.

More Stories on : Outlook | Pharmaceuticals | Glaxosmithkline Pharmaceuticals Ltd

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