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North American Pharmaceutical Sales Growth Up 12 Percent; Continues to Lead Major Markets

FAIRFIELD, CT, February 25, 2003 -- IMS Health (NYSE: RX) released results from its annual IMS World Review report showing that audited global pharmaceutical sales grew 8 percent constant dollar in 2002 to US $400.6 billion. The IMS World Review tracks actual sales of approximately 90 percent of all prescription drugs and certain over-the-counter products in more than 80 countries.  Proprietary data projection methodologies are then used to estimate total audited and unaudited global pharmaceutical sales, which grew to $430.3 billion in 2002.  IMS is the world’s leading provider of information solutions to the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. 

 “Despite economic challenges in the world’s leading markets and a lower-than-normal number of new product introductions, the global pharmaceutical industry experienced solid growth in 2002,” said Graham Lewis, IMS vice president, Strategic Consulting. “Generic drug sales strengthened in North America and Western Europe due to several patent expiries, while the Japan market continued to show nearly flat growth.  Aging populations and the ongoing demand for innovative therapies are expected to effectively sustain pharmaceutical growth in 2003 and beyond.”

IMS World Review is compiled using the IMS MIDAS™ global analysis system, which captures the dynamics of pharmaceutical activity in more than 80 countries.  Growth in sales is measured in constant dollars, enabling analyses without the influence of fluctuating currency exchange rates.  Pharmaceutical sales figures include prescription and certain over-the-counter data, and represent manufacturer prices.

North America, Europe (EU) and Japan accounted for 85 percent of audited worldwide pharmaceutical consumption in 2002 (See Table 1).  Setting the pace among the leading regions, North America pharmaceutical sales grew 12 percent to $203.6 billion, representing more than half of all global sales in 2002.  Europe (EU) experienced solid sales growth of 8 percent, to $90.6 billion; the rest of Europe experienced sales growth of 9 percent, to $11.3 billion.  Japan saw slight year-over-year growth of 1 percent, to $46.9 billion in pharmaceutical sales.  Sales in the Latin American region declined 10 percent to $16.5 billion in 2002 due to economic conditions in that region, while pharmaceutical sales growth in Asia (excluding Japan), Africa and Australia was $31.6 billion, up 11 percent year-over-year. 

TABLE 1

2002 Global Pharmaceutical Sales by Region

Source: IMS World Review 2003. 

* Sales cover direct and indirect pharmaceutical channel purchases in U.S. dollars from pharmaceutical wholesalers and manufacturers. The figures above represent 52 weeks of sales data, and include prescription and certain over-the-counter data and represent manufacturer prices.

Leading Therapy Classes

The top-ten therapy classes accounted for 31 percent of the total audited world market in 2002 (See Table 2).  Three of the leading ten -- cholesterol & triglyceride reducers, antipsychotics and erythropoietin products – each grew more than 10 percent year over year, with antiulcerants up 9 percent.

The antiulcerant class, which covers treatments for stomach ulcers, totaled $21.9 billion in sales last year and remains the leading therapeutic class worldwide, as it has the past 13 years.  In 2002, antiulcerants represented 6 percent of all audited global pharmaceutical sales.   Losec/Prilosec (omeprazole), the world’s leading antiulcerant product and #3-selling drug overall, accounted for $5.2 billion of all sales in this class.

The second-ranked therapy class, cholesterol & triglyceride reducers, grew 12 percent, to $21.7 billion in 2002 sales. Contributing to that growth was strong demand for Lipitor, a cholesterol treatment and the top-selling drug worldwide.  Lipitor sales were up 20 percent year over year, to $8.6 billion.  Antidepressants, the third-ranked therapy class, experienced 5 percent sales growth in 2002, to $17.1 billion.

TABLE 2

Leading Therapy Classes in 2002 Global Pharmaceutical Sales*

Source: IMS World Review 2003. 

* The figures above reflect 52 weeks of U.S. sales data, but are compared with 53 weeks of U.S. sales data in 2001, an adjustment that is made every five years to bring IMS’s data tracking methodology into line with the calendar year. As a result, 2001 U.S. figures used to calculate the percentage growth year-over-year (constant dollar) in this table incorporate five additional days of sales. Sales cover direct and indirect pharmaceutical channel purchases in U.S. dollars from pharmaceutical wholesalers and manufacturers. Figures include prescription and certain over-the-counter data, and represent manufacturer prices.

Leading Products

The top-ten best-selling drugs worldwide accounted for $44.7 billion in sales last year, an 11 percent increase over 2001.  Within the total audited world market, Lipitor is the top-selling drug in 2002, with $8.6 billion in sales, compared with $7.0 billion in 2001 (See Table 3).  The cholesterol-lowering drug Zocor is ranked second, up from third place in 2001, with $6.2 billion in sales and 13 percent growth.  Losec/Prilosec, the second-ranked drug in 2001, was the #3-selling product last year, with $5.2 billion in sales, a 19 percent decline from 2001.

Of the ten best-selling drugs in 2002, the fastest-growing worldwide was Zyprexa, a schizophrenia and bipolar disorder treatment, with sales rising 21 percent year over year to $4.0 billion.

TABLE 3

Leading Products in 2002 Global Pharmaceutical Sales*

Source: IMS World Review 2003. 

* The figures above reflect 52 weeks of U.S. sales data, but are compared with 53 weeks of U.S. sales data in 2001, an adjustment that is made every five years to bring IMS’s data tracking methodology into line with the calendar year. As a result, 2001 U.S. figures used to calculate the percentage growth year-over-year (constant dollar) in this table incorporate five additional days of sales. Sales cover direct and indirect pharmaceutical channel purchases in U.S. dollars from pharmaceutical wholesalers and manufacturers. Figures include prescription and certain over-the-counter data, and represent manufacturer prices.

About IMS

Operating in more than 100 countries, IMS HEALTH is the world's leading provider of information solutions to the pharmaceutical and healthcare industries. With $1.4 billion in 2002 revenue and nearly 50 years of industry experience, IMS offers leading-edge business intelligence products and services that are integral to clients’ day-to-day operations, including marketing effectiveness solutions for prescription and over-the-counter pharmaceutical products; sales optimization solutions to increase pharmaceutical sales force productivity; and consulting and customized services that turn information into actionable insights. Additional information is available at http://www.imshealth.com.