Price hikes lift Pakistan's pharma sales above Rs1 trillion

The retail pharmaceutical market in Pakistan experienced substantial growth, with total sales hitting over Rs1.049 trillion for the 12-month period ending in March 2025.

In term of local currency this marked a 20.62% growth, while it has increased 23.14% in US dollar terms. 

However, the industry experts believed that the surge was primarily driven by rising prices, not a corresponding increase in medicine consumption.

Actual unit sales of pharmaceutical products grew by just 3.63% year-on-year, reaching 3.77 billion units in first quarter 2025 report released by IQVIA Pakistan, according to the latest Market Access Tracker (MAT).

Read: Pakistan's pharmaceutical sector records highest sales in FY24

The stark disparity between revenue and volume growth highlighted growing concerns over affordability and accessibility for the average patient.

Analysts stated that more than two-thirds of the market’s growth this year was due to price escalation, but the pharmaceutical companies attributed the increase in price to inflationary pressures and the depreciating rupee by adjusting prices upward.

Over the past four years, the industry posted a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 19.09% in rupee value. However, the CAGR in the US dollar terms is just 4.05%, reinforcing the impact of currency depreciation.

Read: Karachi pharmacies selling medicines at five-time higher prices, reveals Drap

National pharmaceutical companies retained dominance in terms of volume, selling 2.91 billion units with a year-on-year growth of 4.98%.

In contrast, multinational corporations (MNCs) witnessed a 0.72% decline in volume, slipping to 856 million units. Still, MNCs saw a 19.04% rise in sales value, further underscoring the price-led nature of their growth.

October 2024 was particularly notable, with monthly sales reaching a record Rs96.48 billion, marking the highest in Pakistan’s pharmaceutical history. National firms contributed Rs75.39 billion, while MNCs added Rs21.09 billion.