Mobile Menu

Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China - Market Research Report (2014-2029)

IBISWorld IBISWorld Beijing, China Last Updated: May 2024 2710

Revenue

$139.8bn

2024

$149.6bn

Past 5-Year Growth

Profit

$XX.Xbn

Employees

538k

Businesses

1,455

Wages

$X.Xbn

Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China industry analysis

China is one of the largest producers of pharmaceutical raw materials (PRMs), largely due to its low production costs and large population. China accounts for approximately 70% of global vitamin C output, 70% of citric acid output and 90% of penicillin output.Rising health concerns among Chinese people and strong global demand led to steady industry growth in the past five years. From end of 2019, the COVID-19 began to outbreak and spread around the world, which greatly increased worldwide demand for certain pharmaceutical products. Over the past five years, revenue has been increasing steadily at an annualized 5.4%. Total revenue for the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China is expected to total $139.8 billion in 2023, up by 7.7% from 2022.This industry relies heavily on exports. In 2023, exports are set to reach $70.0 billion, accounting for 50.1% of revenue. Meanwhile, competing imports as a share of domestic demand is expected to be 14.5% in 2023.Over the next five years, revenue for Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China is forecast to grow 5.0% annually, to reach $178.3 billion in 2028. Over $8.0 billion worth of patents of pharmaceuticals will expire over the period, attracting companies in the industry to manufacture generic versions of these products. In addition, expanding demand from rural areas in China will contribute to revenue growth.The Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China is expected to develop towards high-end direction, with increasing market demand for specialty raw materials and patented raw materials. In addition, with increasing environmental protection requirements in China, deepening implementation of the policy of purchasing generic drugs in bulk and intensified market competition, the industry concentration level is expected to increase gradually over the next five years.

Trends and Insights

  • Overseas market occupies an important position in the development of the industry. In 2023, exports as share of industry revenue increases to 50.1%.
  • Bulk raw materials are the largest product segment for the industry. Bulk raw materials have lower profitability, abundant production capacity and great environmental pressure.
  • East China generates over half of the industry's revenue. Having highly developed downstream industries and being close to ports and transport contribute to fast development of the industry in East China.
  • The industry concentration level is low. The sales revenue of the top four enterprises are expected to account for 3.8% of total industry revenue in 2023.
Show more

Everything you need in one report

  • Reliable market estimates from 2014-2029
  • Competitive analysis, industry segmentation, financial benchmarks
  • Powerful SWOT, Porter’s Five Forces and risk management frameworks
  • Online membership platform with PDF, Word, Excel and PPT exports

Industry Overview

Market size and recent performance (2014-2029)

Industry revenue has grown at a CAGR of 5.4 % over the past five years, to reach an estimated $139.8bn in 2024.

Trends and Insights

China has become a major exporter of pharmaceutical raw materials

  • China has become a major producer and exporter of bulk raw materials, and its production technology and processes have reached international leading levels.
  • Additional trends and insights available with purchase

Industry outlook (2024-2029)

Market size is projected to grow over the next five years.

Trends and Insights

The industry concentration level is expected to increase gradually

  • Required by industry policies, pharmaceutical companies become the main responsible units for drugs and their selection for pharmaceutical raw materials will tend towards products with high safety and guaranteed quality, benefiting elimination of backward production capacity and growth of industry concentration level.

Biggest companies in the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China

Company
Market Share (%)
2023
Revenue ($short_0)
2023

There are no companies that hold a large enough market share in the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China industry for IBISWorld to include in this product.

Products & Services Segmentation

Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China

Products & Services

Industry revenue is measured across several distinct product and services lines, including Bulk raw materials, Specialty raw materials and Patented raw materials. Bulk raw materials is the largest segment of the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China.

Trends and Insights

Bulk raw materials segment has lower profitability

  • Bulk raw materials refer to traditional drugs with relatively stable market demand, widespread application, and larger scale, including penicillin, paracetamol, aspirin, ibuprofen, vitamin C, vitamin E, etc.
  • More insights available in the full report

Unbiased research for even more industries at your fingertips

  • 5000+Industries covered
  • 100+Local analysts
  • 250k+Hours of detailed analysis
  • 100k+Subscriber community

Purchase a membership to access this industry and so much more.

Widen you competitive advantage with related industries

Competitors

  • There are no industries to display.

Complementors

  • Chinese Medicinal Herb Growing in China
  • Pharmaceutical Manufacturing in China
  • Traditional Chinese Medicine Manufacturing in China
  • Chinese Patent Drug Manufacturing in China
  • Medical Research in China

International industries

  • Pharmaceutical Product Manufacturing in Australia
  • Basic Pharmaceutical Product Manufacturing in the UK
  • Basic Pharmaceutical Product Manufacturing in Ireland

View all industries in China

Table of Contents

About this industry

Industry definition

The Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry in China manufactures active pharmaceutical ingredients for further preparation of finished pharmaceutical products. Typical products in the industry include bacteriophage, endocrine products, basic vitamins, sulfanilamide medicine, salicylate, glucose and alkaloids. This industry acts as a bridge between the upstream chemical industry and the downstream medical market.

What's included in this industry?

Bulk raw materialsSpecialty raw materialsPatented raw materials

Companies

Purchase this report to view all major companies in this industry.

Related Terms

ACTIVE PHARMACEUTICAL INGREDIENTANTIPYRETICSANALGESICS

Performance

Get an indication of the industry's health through historical, current and forward-looking trends in the performance indicators that make or break businesses.

Analyst insights

Overseas market occupies an important position in the development of the industry. In 2023, exports as share of industry revenue increases to 50.1%.

In this chapter (4)

  • Current Performance
  • Outlook
  • Volatility
  • Life Cycle

Key metrics

  • Annual Revenue, Recent Growth, Forecast, Revenue Volatility
  • Number of Employees, Recent Growth, Forecast, Employees per Business, Revenue per Employee
  • Number of Businesses, Recent Growth, Forecast, Employees per Business, Revenue per Business
  • Total Profit, Profit Margin, Profit per Business

Charts

  • Revenue, including historical (2014-2023) and forecast (2024-2029)
  • Employees, including historical (2014-2023) and forecast (2024-2029)
  • Businesses, including historical (2014-2023) and forecast (2024-2029)
  • Profit, including historical (2014-2024)
  • Industry Volatility vs. Revenue Growth
  • Industry Life Cycle

Detailed analysis

  • Trends in supply, demand and current events that are driving current industry performance
  • Expected trends, economic factors and ongoing events that drive the industry's outlook
  • Key success factors for businesses to overcome volatility
  • How contribution to GDP, industry saturation, innovation, consolidation, and technology and systems influence the industry's life cycle phase.

Products and Markets

Learn about an industry's products and services, markets and trends in international trade.

Analyst insight

Bulk raw materials are the largest product segment for the industry. Bulk raw materials have lower profitability, abundant production capacity and great environmental pressur...

In this chapter

  • Products & Services
  • Major Markets
  • International Trade

Key metrics

  • Largest market segment and value in 2024
  • Product innovation level
  • Total imports, level and trend
  • Total exports, level and trend
  • Trade Balance

Charts

  • Products & services segmentation in 2024
  • Major market segmentation in 2024
  • International trade, including imports by country and exports by country

Detailed analysis

  • Trends impacting the recent performance of the industry's various segments
  • Innovations in the industry's product or service offering, specialization or delivery method
  • Key factors that successful businesses consider in their offerings
  • Buying segments and key trends influencing demand for industry products and services
  • Recent trends in import and export volumes, country of origin or destination, and expected future trends

Geographic Breakdown

Discover where business activity is most concentrated in an industry and the factors driving these trends to find opportunities and conduct regional benchmarking.

Analyst insights

East China generates over half of the industry's revenue. Having highly developed downstream industries and being close to ports and transport contribute to fast development ...

In this chapter (1)

  • Business Locations

Charts

  • Share of revenue, establishment, wages and employment in each region
  • Share of population compared to establishments in each region in 2024

Tables

  • Number and share of establishments in each region in 2024
  • Number and share of revenue each region accounts for in 2024
  • Number and share of wages each region accounts for in 2024
  • Number and share of employees in each region in 2024

Detailed analysis

  • Geographic spread of the industry across Asia Pacific, and trends associated with changes in the business landscape
  • Key success factors for businesses to use location to their advantage

Competitive Forces

Get data and insights on what's driving competition in an industry and the challenges industry operators and new entrants may face, with analysis built around Porter's Five Forces framework.

Analyst insights

The industry concentration level is low. The sales revenue of the top four enterprises are expected to account for 3.8% of total industry revenue in 2023.

In this chapter (4)

  • Concentration
  • Barriers to Entry
  • Substitutes
  • Buyer & Supplier Analysis

Key metrics

  • Industry concentration level
  • Industry competition level and trend
  • Barriers to entry level and trend
  • Substitutes level and trend
  • Buyer power level and trend
  • Supplier power level and trend

Charts

  • Market share concentration among the top 4 suppliers from 2019-2024
  • Supply chain including upstream supplying industries and downstream buying industries, flow chart

Detailed analysis

  • Factors impacting the industry’s level of concentration, such as business distribution, new entrants, or merger and acquisition activity.
  • Key success factors for businesses to manage the competitive environment of the industry.
  • Challenges that potential industry entrants face such as legal, start-up costs, differentiation, labor/capital intensity and capital expenses.
  • Key success factors for potential entrants to overcome barriers to entry.
  • Competitive threats from potential substitutes for the industry’s own products and services.
  • Key success factors for how successful businesses can compete with substitutes.
  • Advantages that buyers have to keep favorable purchasing conditions.
  • Advantages that suppliers have to maintain favorable selling conditions.
  • Key success factors for how businesses can navigate buyer and supplier power.

Companies

Learn about the performance of the top companies in the industry.

Analyst insights

Most major companies develop their pharmaceutical industry chain. Developing active pharmaceutical ingredients-preparations helps enterprises to improve profit margins and en...

In this chapter

  • Market Share Concentration
  • Companies
  • Company Spotlights

Charts

  • Industry market share by company in 2020 through 2024
  • Major companies in the industry, including market share, revenue, profit and profit margin in 2024

Detailed analysis

    External Environment

    Understand the demographic, economic and regulatory factors that shape how businesses in an industry perform.   

    Analyst insights

    The Government in China encourages the industry transformation and upgrading. The Government in China encourages the industry enterprises to enhance independent innovation ca...

    In this chapter

    • External Drivers
    • Regulation & Policy
    • Assistance

    Key metrics

    • Regulation & policy level and trend
    • Assistance level and trend

    Charts

    • Regulation & Policy historical data and forecast (2014-2029) 
    • Assistance historical data and forecast (2014-2029) 

    Detailed analysis

    • Demographic and macroeconomic factors influencing the industry, including Regulation & Policy and Assistance
    • Major types of regulations, regulatory bodies, industry standards or specific regulations impacting requirements for industry operators
    • Key governmental and non-governmental groups or policies that may provide some relief for industry operators.

    Financial Benchmarks

    View average costs for industry operators and compare financial data against an industry's financial benchmarks over time. 

    Analyst insights

    The industry profit margins have increased a little over the past five years. The industry profitability increased from 10.6% in 2018 to 11.3% in 2023.

    In this chapter

    • Cost Structure
    • Financial Ratios
    • Key Ratios

    Key metrics

    • Profit margin, and how it compares to the sector-wide margin
    • Average wages, and how it compares to the sector-wide average wage
    • Largest cost component as a percentage of revenue
    • Industry average ratios for days' receivables, industry coverage and debt-to-net-worth ratio

    Charts

    • Average industry operating costs as a share of revenue, including purchases, wages, depreciation, utilities, rent, other costs and profit in 2024
    • Average sector operating costs as a share of revenue, including purchases, wages, depreciation, utilities, rent, other costs and profit in 2024
    • Investment vs. share of economy

    Data tables

    • Cash Flow & Debt Service Ratios (2014-2029)
    • Revenue per Employee (2014-2029)
    • Revenue per Enterprise (2014-2029)
    • Employees per Establishment (2014-2029)
    • Employees per Enterprise (2014-2029)
    • Average Wage (2014-2029)
    • Wages/Revenue (2014-2029)
    • Establishments per Enterprise (2014-2029)
    • IVA/Revenue (2014-2029)
    • Imports/Demand (2014-2029)
    • Exports/Revenue (2014-2029)

    Detailed analysis

    • Trends in the cost component for industry operators and their impact on industry costs and profitability 

    Key Statistics

    Industry Data

    Data Tables

    Including values and annual change:

    • Revenue (2014-2029)
    • IVA (2014-2029)
    • Establishments (2014-2029)
    • Enterprises (2014-2029)
    • Employment (2014-2029)
    • Exports (2014-2029)
    • Imports (2014-2029)
    • Wages (2014-2029)

    Methodology

    How are IBISWorld reports created?

    IBISWorld has been a leading provider of trusted industry research for over 50 years to the most successful companies worldwide. With offices in Australia, the United States, the United Kingdom, Germany and China, we are proud to have local teams of analysts that conduct research, data analysis and forecasting to produce data-driven industry reports.

    Our analysts start with official, verified and publicly available sources of data to build the most accurate picture of each industry. Analysts then leverage their expertise and knowledge of the local markets to synthesize trends into digestible content for IBISWorld readers. Finally, each report is reviewed by one of IBISWorld’s editors, who provide quality assurance to ensure accuracy and readability.

    IBISWorld relies on human-verified data and human-written analysis to compile each standard industry report. We do not use generative AI tools to write insights, although members can choose to leverage AI-based tools within the platform to generate additional analysis formats.

    What data sources do IBISWorld analysts use?

    Each industry report incorporates data and research from government databases, industry-specific sources, industry contacts, and our own proprietary database of statistics and analysis to provide balanced, independent and accurate insights.

    Key data sources in China include:

    • National Bureau of Statistics China
    • General Administration of Customs
    • People’s Bank of China

    Analysts also use industry specific sources to complement catch-all sources, although their perspective may focus on a particular organization or representative body, rather than a clear overview of all industry operations. However, when balanced against other perspectives, industry-specific sources provide insights into industry trends.

    These sources include:

    • Industry and trade associations
    • Industry federations or regulators
    • Major industry players annual or quarterly filings

    Finally, IBISWorld’s global data scientists maintain a proprietary database of macroeconomic and demand drivers, which our analysts use to help inform industry data and trends. They also maintain a database of statistics and analysis on thousands of industries, which has been built over our more than 50-year history and offers comprehensive insights into long-term trends.

    How does IBISWorld forecast its data?

    IBISWorld’s analysts and data scientists use the sources above to create forecasts for our proprietary datasets and industry statistics. Depending on the dataset, they may use regression analysis, multivariate analysis, time-series analysis or exponential smoothing techniques to project future data for the industry or driver. Additionally, analysts will leverage their local knowledge of industry operating and regulatory conditions to impart their best judgment on the forecast model.

    IBISWorld prides itself on being a trusted, independent source of data, with over 50 years of experience building and maintaining rich datasets and forecasting tools. We are proud to be the keystone source of industry information for thousands of companies across the world.

    Learn more about our methodology and data sourcing on the Help Center.

    Frequently Asked Questions

    Unlock comprehensive answers and precise data upon purchase. View purchase options.

    What is the market size of the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry in China in 2024?

    The market size of the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry in China is $139.8bn in 2024.

    How many businesses are there in the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China industry in 2024?

    There are 1,455 businesses in the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry in China, which has grown at a CAGR of 1.3 % between 2019 and 2024.

    Has the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry in China grown or declined over the past 5 years?

    The market size of the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry in China has been growing at a CAGR of 5.4 % between 2019 and 2024.

    What is the forecast growth of the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry in China over the next 5 years?

    Over the next five years, the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry in China is expected to grow.

    What does the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing in China include?

    Bulk raw materials and Specialty raw materials are part of the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry.

    How competitive is the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry in China?

    The level of competition is high and steady in the Pharmaceutical Raw Material Manufacturing industry in China.