As of the end of last year, the total number of companies supplying finished drugs was 2,577 including 2,027 wholesales (78.7%) and 550 drug manufacturers and importers (21.3%).(image: Kobizmedia/Korea Bizwire)
SEOUL, Aug. 14 (Korea Bizwire) — The size of Korea’s market for finished drugs was 45 trillion won (US$43.7 billion) last year. According to the 2013 Yearbook for Finished Drug Sales” published by the Health Insurance Review & Assessment Service on August 12, the total amount of drugs sold in 2013 was 45,621.0 billion won, up 1.6 percent from the previous year’s 44,909.9 billion won.
Of the 45.6 trillion won, the amount of drugs supplied to wholesalers was 25.0 trillion won, or 54.6 percent in total. The share of drugs supplied to hospitals, pharmacies and other medical service organizations was 43.0 percent with 20.0 trillion won.
As of the end of last year, the total number of companies supplying finished drugs was 2,577 including 2,027 wholesales (78.7%) and 550 drug manufacturers and importers (21.3%). By region, the Seoul metropolitan area including Seoul proper, Gyeonggi Province, and Incheon accounted for 56.5 percent.
In the business of drug supply, there was a significant degree of concentration, with top 5-percent companies in terms of annual supply amount accounting for 55.9 percent of the total supply volume.
By Sean Chung (schung10@koreabizwire.com)
