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Chavez visits Cuba, Castro
appears to be healthy
Venezuelan President Hugo Rafael
Chavez Frias paid a surprising
visit to Cuba and said his Cuban
counterpart Fidel Castro Ruz
appeared to be healthy, local
media reported Sunday.
Chavez arrived in Cuba on Saturday afternoon and
held talks with Castro, said local newspaper Juventud Reb elde,
noting Castro regarded the meeting as "the best night he has had
since his accidental fall."
The 78-year-old Cuban leader fell off a step during a ceremony in
the central city of Santa Clara on Oct. 20, which resulted in his
broken left knee and fractured right arm.
Castro was "extraordinarily" strong, healthy and clear, Chavez told
local reporters after the meeting.
The two leaders discussed bilateral relations, and Chavez informed
Castro of the recent Rio Group summit which Cuba did not attend,
said Juventud Rebelde.
Chavez's visit showed "a new gesture of solidarity to ask after the
health of Fidel and continue strengthening friendly ties with the
Cuban people," the news paper commented.
There are no reports on whether Chavez was still in Cuba or had
already returned to Venezuela.
Pharma cos expand in Latin America
India's Domestic pharmaceutical companies are drumming up the beat
in the Latin American markets. Ranbaxy Laboratories, Nicholas
Piramal, Zydus Cadila, IPCA Laboratories, Ind-Swift Laboratories and
a host of others are expanding their operations in this geography in
a big way.
While Nicholas Piramal India Ltd (NPIL) is open to "various options"
such as acquisitions, distribution alliances and even setting up
subsidiaries there, Ranbaxy has established a regional office in Rio
De Janeiro, Brazil, to oversee its Latin American operations. It is
setting up a manufacturing unit in Brazil, and is present in Peru,
Mexico and Venezuela.
Others such as Ind-Swift and Zydus Cadila plan to export into the
markets while IPCA, Glenmark and Strides Arcolab have a direct
presence in the region.
Ajay Piramal, Chairman and Managing Director, NPIL, said, "Yes, we
are actively looking at the Latin American markets." Elaborating on
this decision, Vijay Shah, Chief Operating Officer, said, "These
markets have been largely untapped. There is a huge potential
especially for generics."
Currently, dominating the Latin American market are branded drugs
imported from the US and other developed countries.
The total size of the Latin American market is estimated to be at
over $30 billion with countries such as Mexico, Brazil, Venezuela,
Peru and Columbia accounting for a major portion. Against the per
capita pharma consumption of $3 in India, the figures in Latin
American countries such as Argentina, Brazil and Chile stand at
$115, $50 and $53 respectively.
Besides this, the region does not have enough manufacturing
facilities. "Hence the Delhi-based Ranbaxy and
Bangalore-headquartered Strides Arcolab have decided to set up
manufacturing bases there," said an industry analyst.
Currently, generic companies present in Latin America include
US-based Ivax Corporation, Lab Kimiceg of Venezuela and Lab Silanes
of Mexico.
Due to the dominance of branded drugs, access to medicine among the
population is limited. Also, the regulatory environment in the
region is conducive to the entry of generic products. Another reason
why Indian companies are showing increasing interest is the
stabilisation of the currency.
According to Alok Gupta, Country Head, Life Sciences and
Biotechnology, Yes Bank Ltd, "The volatility of the Brazilian
currency during the last few years was a deterrent to pharma
companies wishing to make investments. But now, with it stabilising,
there is renewed interest."
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