The global over-the-counter pharmaceuticals market will reach $106.3bn in 2017

Monday 4 November 2013, Amsterdam

This new new report predicts that the global over-the-counter pharmaceuticals market will reach $106.3bn in 2017. This forecast and others appear in World OTC Pharmaceutical Market 2013-2023, published in October 2013.

Over-the-counter (OTC) pharmaceuticals are medicines that are available to patients and consumers without the need for a prescription. The OTC pharmaceutical market is expected to grow throughout 2013-2023, driven by demographic and economic trends, the switching of medicines from prescription-only to OTC sale, and changes in cultural attitudes to self-medication and regulatory processes in national markets. The market continues to attract pharmaceutical companies seeking to build a diverse portfolio of healthcare businesses as well as consumer goods companies aiming to extend their range of consumer brands.

Thomas Ling, a pharmaceutical industry analyst, explains: “The next ten years will see the world OTC pharmaceutical market double in size as continued demand for affordable medicines, especially in emerging economies, and the creation of entirely new markets in new therapeutic areas, generates opportunities for growth. The FDA’s Nonprescription Drug Safe Use Regulatory Expansion (NSURE) initiative, announced in February 2012, is likely to encourage more switching of prescription drugs to OTC sale. New technologies such as electronic information kiosks in pharmacies may lead to OTC switching of medicines currently considered inappropriate for self-treatment, potentially allowing drugs such as Lipitor (atorvastatin, Pfizer) to eventually make the switch to OTC. This is in addition to 2013’s switch of Merck’s Oxytrol for Women, which created a new market in medicines for self-treatment of overactive bladder. We also expect to see store-brand OTC products continue to gain market share in this competitive market.”

The US is currently the leading national market with 30.4% of the world OTC pharmaceutical market in 2012. However, emerging economies such as China and India are predicted to become significant markets in the second half of the forecast period, with the BRIC nations expected to represent 44.1% of the global market in 2023.

The report provides revenue forecasts to 2023 for the world OTC pharmaceutical market and leading national markets. It forecasts sales in the US, Japan, the EU5 countries of Germany, the UK, France, Italy and Spain, and the BRIC nations of Brazil, Russia, India and China. The report also forecasts sales for the market segments of cough, cold and allergy medicines; analgesics; dermatological products and gastrointestinal remedies. It includes interviews with industry experts regarding current market trends.