Pfizer Moving up Japanese Sales Rankings

According to industry data supplied by Japanese market research sources, US drug major Pfizer has secured third place in the country's prescription drug market. Although local drug major Takeda maintained a clear lead in drug sales reported at distributor level, at JPY541bn (US$5.12bn), sales growth at Pfizer's local unit was the fastest in the top five, rising 22 percent to JPY314bn (US$3.02bn).

The top five is completed by Yamanouchi, in second place with sales of JPY348bn (US$3.34bn), Roche affiliate Chugai in fourth place with sales of JPY311bn (US$2.99bn), and fifth-placed Sankyo, which had sales estimated at JPY280bn (US$2.69bn) in 2004. However, the results also indicate that Yamanouchi's sales fell by 1.4 percent and Sankyo's declined by 11.4 percent, while Chugai's sales rose by an encouraging 8.1 percent in the year. An analysis of sales results that attributes sales of drugs promoted by each company, as opposed to accounting sales according to each drug's distributor company, is even more positive for Pfizer, putting the company in second place behind Takeda.

Nevertheless, Pfizer will have little time to bolster its strong position in Japan's sales rankings, as the local sector appears to be consolidating. The merger of Yamanouchi with Fujisawa Pharmaceutical in April is widely expected to create the country's second largest drugmaker. Further, if talks between Sankyo and Daiichi Pharmaceutical lead to a merger, foreign companies are likely to face a stiffening competition amid already difficult local market conditions.