DUBLIN, Ireland--(BUSINESS WIRE)--Research and Markets (http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/9148a3/greece_pharmaceuti) has announced the addition of the "Greece Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report Q3 2008" report to their offering.

Our Greece Pharmaceuticals and Healthcare Report provides independent forecasts and competitive intelligence on Greece's pharmaceuticals and healthcare industry.

Greece represents one of the least developed pharmaceutical markets within the established European Union (EU) members. However, when judged against Emerging Europe, Greece continues to occupy pole position in our Business Environment Ranking for Q308, ahead of the other 16 markets surveyed in the region. Some of the market’s positives include the potential for the growth of its over-the-counter (OTC) market following the 2006 removal of such products from the reimbursement list. On the other hand, pharmaceutical prices are continuously revised downward, with the author actually forecasting market contraction through 2012, to US$5.41bn, down from some US$5.68bn in 2007.

There are other worrying signs. For example, a recent report by Eurostat warned that the ageing and less mobile population across the EU may have a marked disadvantage for the Bloc’s ability to innovate in science and technology. Specifically, Greece had the lowest job-to-job mobility within the EU, alongside Hungary and Slovenia. Given that such mobility is beneficial to the overall economy, through the means of knowledge transfer, Greece is seen as being disadvantaged by this fact, which results from a less flexible labour market.

Similarly, in April 2008, the Advocate General of the European Court of Justice (ECJ) ruled that UK pharmaceutical giant GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) must lift self-imposed restrictions on supplying wholesalers in Greece, which had been put in place to prevent parallel exports. The court stated that the restrictions constituted an abuse of dominant market position, while also potentially breaching EU antitrust rules. Apart from being set to negatively impact financial performance of the company in question, the ruling also represents a significant blow to opponents of parallel trade. Multinationals are already sidelining Greece when choosing where to launch innovative medicines, with the latest development further discouraging their presence in the country.

On the other hand, the medical devices sector continues to offer substantial opportunities for foreign players. The medical devices industry in Greece is worth an estimated US$850mn, with imports supplying the vast majority of the market, especially on the high-tech end of the scale. In fact, in the 2002-2006 period, imports rose by almost 100% in terms of value. Domestic producers of medical devices are mostly engaged in the manufacture of low-value but high-quantity products, such as medical supplies.

Key Topics Covered:

Executive Summary

Greece Pharmaceuticals And Healthcare Industry SWOT

Greece Political SWOT

Greece Economic SWOT

Greece Business Environment SWOT

Pharmaceutical Business Environment Rating

Table: Central And Eastern Europe Pharmaceutical And Healthcare Business Environment Rankings

Limits Of Potential Returns

Risks To Realisation Of Returns

Greece – Market Summary

Regulatory Regime

Intellectual Property Regime

Pricing Regime

Table: Pharmaceutical Pricing In Greece

Reimbursement Regime

Parallel Trade

Industry Developments

Epidemiology

Healthcare System

Secondary Care

Healthcare Expenditure

Healthcare Reforms

Pharmaceutical Industry

Wholesale And Retail Sectors

Recent Pharmaceutical Industry Developments

Medical Devices

Table: Imports by main country of origin (Value in € thousand)

Industry Forecast Scenario

Overall Market Forecast

Table: Greece – Drug Expenditure And Prescription Market Indicators

Key Growth Factors – Industry

Table: Greece’s Health Expenditure Indicators, 2006-2012

Key Growth Factors – Macroeconomic

A Four Percent Zenith

Table: ECONOMIC ACTIVITY

Patented Market Forecast

Table: Greece’s Patented Drugs Market Indicators, 2006-2012 (US$mn unless otherwise stated)

Generics Market Forecasts

Table: Greece’s Generics Market Indicators, 2006-2012

OTC Market Forecast

Table: Greece’s OTC Drugs Market Indicators, 2006-2012 (US$mn unless otherwise stated)

Export/Import Forecasts

Table: Greece’s Pharmaceuticals Exports And Imports Indicators, 2006-2012 (US$mn)

Other Healthcare Data Forecasts

Table: Greece Other Healthcare Data Forecasts

Key Risks To our Forecasts

Competitive Landscape

Table Top 10 Best-Selling Pharmaceuticals In Greece, 2006

Table: Top 10 Pharmaceutical Companies In Greece By Sales, 2006

Company Monitor

Multinational Company Profiles

GlaxoSmithKline

Pfizer

Novartis

Sanofi-Aventis

Merck & Co

Abbott Laboratories

Indigenous Company Profiles

Vianex

Lavipharm

Gerolymatos SA

Genesis Pharma

Genepharm

Pharmathen Pharmaceuticals

Kleva

Our Forecast Modelling

How We Generate Our Pharmaceutical Industry Forecasts

Pharmaceutical Industry

Pharmaceutical Business Environment Ratings Methodology

Ratings Overview

Table: Pharmaceutical Business Environment Indicators

Weighting

Table: Weighting Of Components

Sources

Companies Mentioned:

- Abbott Laboratories

- Genepharm

- Genesis Pharma

- Gerolymatos SA

- GlaxoSmithKline

- Kleva

- Lavipharm

- Merck & Co

- Novartis

- Pfizer

- Pharmathen Pharmaceuticals

- Sanofi-Aventis

- Vianex

For more information visit http://www.researchandmarkets.com/research/9148a3/greece_pharmaceuti

Research and Markets
Laura Wood, Senior Manager
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