Chinese vaccination market to consolidate

The Chinese vaccine industry will consolidate against a background of increased mergers and acquisitions within the next three to five years, according to an Interfax China report.

Chen Dagao, general manager of Jinagsu Yanshen Biological Technology Stock, told the 2007 International Conference for Bio-economy in Tianjin that an oversupply in the vaccine market would result in mergers and acquisitions.

Currently, China has 32 vaccine manufacturers and Chen has predicted that the number will exceed 40 within the next three years due to the fast growth of the vaccine market there. China's vaccine market is estimated to be worth around CNY 3bn (USD 393.7m).

Greater government investment into public immunisation programmes, improved living standards and the entrance of more multinational vaccine makers, will also increase vaccine sales in the region.

Industry figures show that only 0.3 per cent of senior citizens in China have been immunised against influenza, compared with the five per cent level recommended by the World Health Organisation (WHO).

Chen added that the vaccine production capability of Chinese vaccine makers had almost exceeded demand in China, and that only a few vaccines, including rabies vaccines, were in short supply.

Chinese vaccine makers are usually quite small enterprises, with only two or three products, making it easy to facilitate a future culture of M&A between makers.

Peter Wang, chairman and CEO of China Biopharma, said that China is one of the worlds fastest growing pharmaceutical markets, with 25 per cent growth recorded in 2005, compared with a 6.5 per cent world average. Chen added that China ranked as the worldís fourth largest vaccine market. In 2005, the Chinese vaccine sales value was USD 429m (EUR 315.1m) and the market has increased four times in the past decade.