Espicom's in-depth pharmaceutical market reports are ideal for executives wanting to understand the key drivers in pharmaceutical markets and have access to a wealth of statistical data. Each report opens with an outlook section that provides analysis of the market, 5-year market forecasts, national data projections, market outlook and key developments such as regulation, pricing/reimbursement, intellectual property, health facilities and government policy. The report also provides extensive background information, population trends, health status, health expenditure, organisation & administration, hospital services, medical personnel, healthcare development, market access information, trade data for raw materials and finished products and essential industry contacts. Included with the report are 3 free quarterly updated outlook reports, enabling you to keep up to date with market developments for a year. The Russian Federation forms the major part of the former USSR. Despite its vast size and large population, the country remains in a political and economic limbo; the old Soviet system has been comprehensively torn down, but serious and sustained market reforms have yet to take place. Russia's political system, public administration, tax system and legal framework all remain badly flawed, resulting in widespread corruption and inefficiency. Economic growth was never strong during the 1990s, with the crisis of 1998 severely denting the country's international credibility. Since 1998, the economy has performed better than expected, although this is more to do with high oil prices and currency movements than any sustained structural improvement.

Healthcare in Russia remains in a poor state. Public hospitals and polyclinics face severe funding shortages, although some facilties have been upgraded under the national ‘health' project; so far, R16 billion (US$0.6 billion) has been spent on the procurement of medical devices and pharmaceuticals. Relying heavily on imports, the 1998 economic crisis left Russia with severe drugs shortages. Prices doubled and imports fell. The pharmaceutical market is estimated to have lost more than half its value since 1997. There are, however, signs of improvement. Both domestic production and imports have increased since 2000 and the government finally imposed VAT on imported pharmaceuticals in December 2001. Despite continual funding difficulties, the federal drug supply system (DLO) introduced in January 2005 has made the industry more competitive and has acted a gateway for foreign companies to enter the market. Around 74% of the market is supplied by imports. Germany and France were the leading suppliers in 2005, accounting for over 30% of imports. The value of imports grew by 52.4% in 2005, reaching US$4.3 billion. Many importers are CEE generic companies such as Gedeon Richter, Krka and Lek.