'Wave of consolidation to hit Indian pharma sector'

LONDON: A wave of consolidation will hit low-cost Indian drugmakers over the next three years as companies seek global scale to survive, Ranbaxy Laboratories Ltd Chief executive Malvinder Singh said on Wednesday. Ranbaxy's decision this month to accept a takeover offer worth up to $4.6 billion from Japan's Daiichi Sankyo could also make family-held businesses across India rethink the idea of selling to foreigners, he added. "This might make people revisit their strategies and look at the various options they have to enhance the growth of their organisations," he told reporters in an interview at the company's London headquarters. "This (deal) to me is another sign of India's businesses being more integrated globally and recognizing that globalization is a two-way street." Indian drug makers until recently were on acquisition... [read full story]