Zhejiang Medicine's defense success | APIs are exempted from tariffs in the US!

Medical Network August 14th Today afternoon, Zhejiang Shaoxing Business Bureau official micro-announced news: Zhejiang Pharmaceuticals insisted on defense, related fine chemicals, APIs and preparations export products were finally excluded from the $34 billion commodity plus 25% tariff Outside the list.

To put it simply, it is all the above-mentioned products are exempted from tariffs. It is reported that in the context of the escalating trade dispute between China and the United States, as the world's largest exporter of APIs, the first batch of imports for China was released from the United States in early July. After the list of goods to be levied on tariffs, many pharmaceutical companies, including Zhejiang Medicine, found that the fine chemical raw materials and preparations were almost all included in the list. To this end, Zhejiang Pharmaceutical and other related organizations immediately organized the organization to actively participate in the United States. Hearing. Through the public comment procedure, the latest news is that the US will exempt all related products from tariffs. The reporter noted that the sensitive capital market has reacted, and the concept of vitamins has risen. Today, Zhejiang Pharmaceuticals rose 6.25%.

In fact, this contest has already quietly appeared. As early as April this year, the US Trade Representative Office announced a list of taxable goods for China, including 122 medical products (32 medicinal chemicals, drug Or 38 items of biological products, medical instruments 52 items). Only accurately named medicine Coenzyme Q10, droperidol two drugs affect 108 pharmaceutical companies.

The news broke out and caused widespread concern. The reporter learned that relevant enterprise Quickly mobilize resources, hire US lawyers, prepare hearing materials, and actively seek space in the international market. After consultation and public hearings, the United States conducted a comprehensive investigation and finally agreed to take all drugs imported from China from 301. It was deleted from the tax catalogue, including the most important APIs and preparations. It is understood that in April this year, Lianya Pharmaceuticals also received a tariff warning issued by the US, including contraceptives and related pharmaceutical preparations imported from China into the United States. Multi-mediation, as the only Chinese pharmaceutical manufacturer to participate in the USTR hearing, Lianya Pharmaceutical has contributed.

What I want to say here is that as the pace of Chinese medicine companies 'going out' is accelerating, a very real problem is that the future international trade dispute is neither the first time nor the last time, and the friction may be in the future. More and more. Through the appearance, from this trade dispute, it may be possible to read different information: Export-oriented pharmaceutical companies represented by Zhejiang Pharmaceutical and Lianya Pharmaceuticals can obtain tariff exemptions. Concerns: First, the rapid response; Second, the use of American logic and thinking to resolve trade disputes; Third, to seize the roots of the US taxation of China, with detailed evidence to prove the irreplaceability of its products; Fourth, familiar with the US hearing The characteristics of the process. At a deeper level, does this mean that China's API and preparation industry has changed from passive development to active development in the international market.

Recently, raw materials medicines are in the whirlpool of public opinion, and the prices of raw materials such as chlorpheniramine have risen by tens of times, causing concern of all parties. Where will the future international trade in medicine go?

The reporter learned from the data released by the China Medical Insurance Chamber of Commerce that in 2017, China's import and export of APIs reached US$37.84 billion, a year-on-year increase of 13.84%. This is a period of rapid growth after two years of adjustment. However, currently Under the US trade friction, this year did increase the uncertainty of some raw materials.

According to statistics, in terms of the export of raw materials, 2017 showed a situation in which both volume and price rose. The export volume reached 8.961 million tons, which continued to hit a record high, up 8.33% year-on-year; the average export price bottomed out, up 4.96% year-on-year. Compared with the previous year, the price has been repaired; under the superposition of the two, the export value increased by 13.71% year-on-year to reach 29.117 billion US dollars.

Some experts said that in the overall situation, the export situation of most APIs in 2017 has achieved different degrees of growth. Bulk APIs such as vitamins, amino acids, aminoglycosides, antipyretic and analgesic Exports such as categories reached double-digit growth year-on-year. Vitamins outperformed, export volume increased by 46% year-on-year, and export volume and average price increased by 14% and 28% respectively, including VA, VB1, VC, VD and other specific export products. It has increased by more than 40%; the export value of specific varieties such as threonine, methionine and glutamic acid in amino acid APIs has also increased by more than 40% year-on-year; the export of streptomycin in aminoglycoside raw materials has reached 83%. Growth, while gentamicin exports have decreased by 3%; antipyretic and analgesic raw materials mainly exported to paracetamol, ibuprofen, analgin, etc. also have a 5% to 14% year-on-year increase. Penicillins, The export of bulk pharmaceuticals such as hormones, cephalosporins and tetracyclines increased slightly year-on-year, maintaining a steady growth trend.

'The Sino-US pharmaceutical industry is highly dependent.' For the US to significantly reduce the pharmaceutical products in the taxation catalogue, some analysts pointed out that the root cause lies in the high correlation between the Chinese and American pharmaceutical industries.

Whether it is a tariff storm, a price monopoly, or an environmental pressure, the API industry is no longer calm. However, China is the world's largest producer of APIs and a major exporter of APIs. The transformation is painful. The key is experience. How can the API industry after shuffling be boosted as soon as possible?

For a long time, China's exports of APIs are close to 20% of the world's API market, mainly based on bulk APIs, with absolute advantages in vitamin C, penicillin potassium, paracetamol, and aspirin, in more than 60 varieties. With strong competitiveness. Where is the future competitive advantage? Focus on continuous innovation, production lines need technological innovation to change the traditional full-chain model, actively carry out equipment transformation and renewal in the production process, and at the same time in the research and development.

Yu Mingde, honorary president of China Pharmaceutical Enterprise Management Association, said, 'China's pharmaceutical transformation and upgrading people should come in, products go out, capital goes out. 'He stressed the necessity of innovation, 'such as new technology, new technology, new materials, new standard The innovation is equally important. Bio-enzymes replace chemical synthesis, pipeline reactions replace batch tanks, and macroporous resin separation and purification online control technology - ampicillin, amoxicillin, etc. are successful cases. Innovation is fundamental.

From this perspective, Shijiazhuang Group is a model for transforming innovative drugs from APIs. Antibiotics, vitamins and caffeine of stone medicine play a pivotal role in the segmentation. The company's strategy in the field of API is to focus on superior products. Only a small number of varieties with technical and scale advantages are retained, leading the world. The focus of development is shifting to the field of preparation. The bulk drug sector accounts for only 20% of operating income, and innovative drugs have become the main source of profit.

Zhejiang Taizhou, which represents the development direction of China's APIs, is also adjusting its industrial structure. Huahai is on the basis of the industrialization of specialty APIs, using the international cooperation platform and the opportunity of the international major original research patent protection to expire, and the industrial chain will be downstream. The value-added formulation field extends. Experts say, 'Strengthening innovation investment can encourage companies to gain incremental profit margins, such as continuously developing specialty APIs, and increasing R&D and production of small-scale drugs with high profits, such as anti-tumor. Drugs, prostate drugs and certain hormonal drugs, these specialty drugs will be the profit margin of the bulk drug industry in the future.