DHL Sees Growth in Asia’s Life Sciences Sector

DHL has seen a record number of movements of healthcare products in 2009 in Asia. Compared to 2008, shipment of finished pharmaceuticals, vaccines, medical equipment and devices and clinical trials facilitated by the company’s Life Sciences & Healthcare Global Customer Solutions grew overall by seven percent, despite the economic downturn.

Sue Arden, VP, Global Customer Solutions, Life Sciences & Healthcare, DHL Asia Pacific, said “Two major factors driving this growth are the rising demand for healthcare in fast-expanding economies such as China and India, as well as the rapidly ageing populations in countries such as Japan, South Korea, Australia, Taiwan and Singapore. The growth trend is not surprising given the increasing demand for quality healthcare and affluence in Asia. By 2014, China and India will make up 50 percent of the world’s population.”

According to Datamonitor, pharmaceutical sales in Asia Pacific amounted to US$124.3 billion in 2009 representing 19.3 percent of global sales. Sales are projected to grow steadily at a Compound Annual Growth Rate (CAGR) that exceeds 4.2 percent from 2009 to 2014, reaching US$153 billion. From 2005 to 2009, the China market grew the fastest with a CAGR of 21.1 per cent and is projected to grow rapidly at a CAGR of 9.7 per cent from 2009 to 2014.

Arden said, “The establishment of DHL’s first China Competence Center in Pudong International Airport, Shanghai and a second scheduled to open within 2010 in Tianjin is a testament to the growing demand and opportunity we see in this sector”.

The company’s Life Science Competence Center in Singapore serves to support the pharmaceutical industry and the Singapore Government’s goal of having at least 10 multi-national production facilities in operation by 2010.”

In Singapore, there are more than 30 leading biomedical sciences companies with their regional headquarters here and the Singapore Government is targeting US$17 billion in biosciences manufacturing output by 2015.

Arden added there has been an increase in the demand for quality transportation of temperature sensitive products requiring either controlled ambient or more stringent temperature monitoring.

Vaccines have emerged as one of the growth segments in the global pharmaceutical industry. With a projected CAGR of over 13 percent from 2009 to 2012, the industry will emerge as the fastest growing sector. The US and Europe represent the two largest vaccine markets in the world and will continue experiencing healthy growth rate in future.