There was rarely or even no Chinese pharmaceutical enterprise ranking in the previous lists of global top 100 pharmaceutical companies, but Indian Sun Pharmaceutical has ranked therein for years. People are expecting when there would be local Chinese enterprises ranking in the lists!

Today, the first day of 2017, we bring you a new year surprise. This time, local Chinese enterprises finally rank in a list!

The 2016 World’s Top 100 Pharma Companies Ranking List issued by Informa Pharma Intelligence previously uses the ranking standard of 2015 sales, with the top 3 still being Pfizer, Novartis and Roche. The situation of tripartite confrontation of those 3 pharmaceutical giants has lasted for many years.

Wherein, it’s worth noting that there are 3 local Chinese enterprises ranking in the list this time, separately being Hisun Pharmaceutical ranking 60th, China National Pharmaceutical Group ranking 78th and Shanghai Pharma ranking 92th.

What took to the heart of Chinese people previously is that there was no local Chinese enterprise in the relevant lists, but Indian Sun Pharmaceutical has ranked therein for years, and the most profitable variety of the company is the Imatinib Mesylate Tablets that rankles in the mind of Chinese people, i.e., the generic drug of the well-known "Gleevec".

China is overall weak concerning the pharmaceutical innovation level, which could first be evidenced by R&D investment. According to reports, the U.S. funds more than USD 100 billion in new drug R&D every year, and transnational pharmaceutical enterprises have been generous with R&D investment. The R&D investment proportion of most transnational pharmaceutical companies is 15%-20% of their annual sales revenue. And even for Indian pharmaceutical companies based on imitation, the R&D investment proportion also approaches 10% of the annual sales revenue.

For local Chinese pharmaceutical enterprises, the enterprise R&D investment is small and the innovation ability is weak, which are difficulties that trouble the industry development. Regarding product structure, Chinese pharmaceutical enterprises have been based on imitation for years, with most being low-level repeated pharmaceutical products that are changed the dosage form, with rare innovation. Transnational pharmaceutical enterprises overall almost monopolize the high-end patent drug market in China.

Currently, some strong local Chinese enterprises are reaching overseas and actively conducting layout through overseas investment to seize the first opportunity in the future international competition, simultaneously with transnational pharmaceutical enterprises’ increase of investment in China. Those said Chinese enterprises also continue to explore the new drug R&D direction, open new drug R&D fields, increase the economic strength and strengthen the R&D management. We expect that there will be enterprise like Huawei among local Chinese pharmaceutical enterprises someday, rising to fame in the world!

2016 Top 100 Pharma Companies

(By 2015 sales, USD 1 million)