Development of the global pharmaceutical market under the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic

Abstract

The paper examines the peculiarities of development of the global pharmaceutical market under the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. It has been proved that pharmaceutics is currently one of the most dynamic and science-intensive sectors of economy in Ukraine and across the world with its development stipulated by a growing demand for pharmaceutical products and the increase in government expenditures for healthcare. The purpose of the presented work is the analysis of development of the global pharmaceutical market under the conditions of the COVID-19 pandemic. It is established that the growth of the global pharmaceutical market is preconditioned primarily by the following trends: growth in the segment of biologically active additives (BAA) and the generic drug segment; epidemiological and economic changes; growth in demand for medication which is effective in the treatment of diseases previously typical only for the developed countries. An analysis has been conducted with regard to the dynamics of health-care costs over the period of 1995–2020 among three groups of countries: with high / medium / low per capita income. According to the results of the statistic analysis of the foreign trade balance of Ukraine in the period of 2016–2020 it was asserted that within the structure of foreign trade operations the importation of pharmaceutical products significantly exceeds its exportation. Contrary to the global market with its upward trend of growing consumption of medicines, Ukraine manifests fairly modest consumption, mainly stipulated by low purchasing power of the population. A ranking of the leading companies in the Ukrainian market of pharmaceutical products has been established with regard to three indicators: the growth of sales, the Evolution Index, the market share. The paper scrutinizes possible risks in the global pharmaceutical market in consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic: disruption of the global supply chain; deficit of medications for intensive care units and emergent of bottlenecks in their production distribution; decline in demand for prescription medicines. Among the local short-term risks for the pharmaceutical market of Ukraine are as follows: a relatively slow recovery of basic macroeconomic indicators; structure of household expenditures; increased fiscal pressure on manufacturers; unstable political and economic situation within the country.