TAIWAN REPORTS SHARP DRUG EXPORTS RISE

Taiwan's Industrial Technology Research Institute (ITRI) has reported a sharp expansion in the country's pharmaceutical exports in the first half of 2005. According to a new study, Taiwan's finished drug exports totalled TWD1.24bn (US$38.86mn) in the period, a 93.8% year-on-year rise.

ITRI attributes the results to surging demand from Australia and Japan, but local firms continue to complain that tightening US drug import restrictions are limiting growth prospects. The statistics also highlight the fact that production in Taiwan is overwhelmingly concentrated on drug raw materials, which were worth some TWD4.33bn (US$135.70mn) in the period.

Frustratingly for the government's ambitions for the sector, biotechnology and biotech service exports did not rise at quite the same sharp pace in the half year. The industry is expected to report output worth TWD21.2bn (US$664.38mn) by the end of the year, representing a year-on-year increase of 5%. Meanwhile, traditional Chinese medicines output rose by a sharper 7.6% in the period, worth TWD2.4bn (US$75.53mn) in the January-June period.

Further, the results also underline Taiwan's relative dependency on pharmaceutical imports. According to ITRI's study, drug imports totalled some TWD15.68bn (US$491.40mn) in the six-month period. Taiwan's drug imports are expected to exceed US$1.2bn by 2009, with multinationals increasingly pledging fresh investment aimed at the export market.