Lupin expects to catch up on its product launches in the US, even as it watches the changes in the price control regime at home with concern.

An area of worry in the domestic market is over NLEM or National List of Essential Medicines and what comes of price control, Lupin Executive Director Nilesh Gupta told Business Line . The NLEM comprises 348 drugs, and the Government proposes to bring the entire list under price control from the earlier 74 drugs that were controlled.

Also, the local new drug approval process has become more well-defined and the procedural change could pose some challenges, he observed.

Lupin’s growth in the three-months under review is buoyed by its performance in India, the US and Japanese markets. The US grew by 43 per cent, India by 18 per cent and Japan 55 per cent, he said, adding that Lupin gets 90 per cent of its revenues from these markets.

In the US, Lupin hopes to catch up on lost time regarding its product launches. The projection was 20 products this year, but there has been only one launch in the last six months, he said. There was a hold-up by the Food and Drug Administration and a couple of manufacturing sites were inspected.

Further, he pointed out that Lupin’s consolidated profits were comparable to last year’s performance, if the one-time payment received in the same quarter last year is kept out. In the corresponding quarter last year, the company received $20 million following a research and development agreement with Medicis Pharmaceutical Corporation, to apply its proprietary technologies to multiple therapeutic compounds.

Lupin shares were marginally down over one per cent, at Rs 562 on the BSE on Tuesday.

>jyothi.datta@thehindu.co.in

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