In January–May 2024, products of around 8,400 brands, including unbranded products of various manufacturers, were on the market. At the same time, only 553, or 6.6% of those brands were available in more than half of Russian pharmacies (a numeric distribution of more than 50%). We thought it was important to analyze the brands with a numeric distribution increase in January–May 2024, given that they accounted for only around 22% of the total number of brands. In addition, some 200 brands had a more than 5-percent increase, and the distribution of only nine of them went up by more than 20%. The drugs with the highest numeric distribution, however, did not see any significant change in availability.

The sales of a pharmaceutical drug are most often directly dependent on the actual availability at the point of sale at the time of the consumer’s request. Manufacturers tend to try to make sure that their products have the highest numeric distribution, although it is bound to fluctuate. While the distribution of certain products usually increases at the launch, the distribution can sometimes drop due to competition or supply interruptions.

In January–April 2024, 14.3 billion rubles worth of veterinary drugs were sold on the Russian veterinary retail market (retail prices, VAT included), up 15.6% from the same period in 2023. In physical terms, 85.6 million minimum dosage units (MDU) were sold, up 12% from January–April 2023. Online sales contributed to the high growth rates the most—they went up 73.4% in monetary terms and 50.8% in physical terms. The growth rates of the offline channel are only 5.4% and 6.9%.

In 2023, veterinary drugs on the Russian retail market (e-com included) went up in price 26.6% from 2022. The fastest price growth rates were seen in early 2023; as a result of the devaluation of the ruble and the subsequent correction of prices for imported goods on the Russian market, inflation surged in June–August 2023. By the end of the year, the prices had stabilized, dropping to a year-low. January and February 2024, however, saw an upward trend (26.4% and 28.6%, respectively), which peaked in March 2024 with 44.9%, and continued in April 2024 with 44.3%. In January–April 2024, the price index was 38.6%.

In 2023, Russia manufactured 21.04 billion doses of veterinary vaccines and anatoxins, up 27.5% from 2022. Manufacture fell just once in the past 5 years—by 1.1% in 2020. Since 2022, however, manufacture has been growing at a double-digit rate. In Q1 2024, 7.02 billion doses were manufactured against 4 billion in the same period in 2023—a record-high increase of 68.3%.

In 2023, medical equipment and devices on the Russian retail market (e-com included) went up in price 6.2% from 2022. The inflation rates were vastly different for various types of medical equipment. In particular, the prices for blood glucose monitors went up the most, with the inflation rate never going down below zero, unlike the other four types of equipment. In March 2024, the inflation rate for glucose meters was more than 85.5% (Fig. 1). Another peculiarity is that the prices index in the online market was significantly higher than that in the offline segment. The online prices for glucose monitors grew by more than 86% against 68% in the offline channel. The total price index in the category was 70.1% in Q1 2024.

In Q1 2024, 2.76 million medical thermometers worth 949.2 million rubles (retail prices, VAT included) were sold on the Russian retail market (online sales included), up 8.2% and 7.1% from Q1 2023 in monetary and physical terms, respectively. Offline sales went up 7.7% in rubles and up 5% in units, while online sales grew 11.4% in rubles and 7.4% in units.

In 2023, veterinary drugs on the Russian retail market (e-com included) went up in price 26.6% from 2022. The highest price growth rates were seen in early 2023 (Fig. 1); as a result of the devaluation of the ruble and the subsequent correction of prices for imported goods on the Russian market, inflation surged in June–August 2023. By the end of the year, the prices had stabilized, dropping to a year-low. January and February 2024, however, saw an upward trend (26.4% and 28.6%, respectively), which peaked in March 2024 with 44.9%, going back to last year’s index. In January–March 2024, the price index was 34.7%.

In Q1 2024, 8.7 billion rubles worth of veterinary drugs were sold on the Russian veterinary retail market (retail prices, VAT included), up 13.5% from Q1 2023. In physical terms, 57.7 million minimum dosage units (MDU) were sold, up 11.8% from Q1 2023. The offline channel, as well as the online segment, saw positive growth rates.

In Q1 2024, 1.8 billion rubles’ worth of nebulizers were sold on the Russian retail market (retail prices, VAT included), up 38% from Q1 2023. In physical terms, 752,000 devices were sold, up 51% from the same period in 2023. In 2023, however, 4.9 billion rubles’ worth of nebulizers were sold, up by only 0.5% in rubles and by 10% in units from 2022. The product range has been changing, which affects the average price—it was 2,390 rubles in Q1 2024 against 2,610 in Q1 2023. As well as for almost any other category of medical devices, the price index for nebulizers was negative. In Q1 2024, the prices began to rise, with an inflation rate of 3.3%.