JW Jungwoo Pharmaceutical, 606.6 Billion KRW in Sales Last Year... 10.8% Increase from Previous Year

First Ever Sales Surpass 600 Billion KRW
Operating Profit Turns Positive at 33.4 Billion KRW... Highest in 12 Years
Continuous Growth in Original Specialty Pharmaceuticals
New Products Also Successfully Established

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Gwan-joo] JW Pharmaceutical announced on the 9th that its consolidated sales last year reached 606.6 billion KRW, an increase of 10.8% compared to the previous year.

This is the first time JW Pharmaceutical's sales have surpassed 600 billion KRW. Last year's operating profit turned positive to 33.4 billion KRW, achieving the highest level in 12 years, significantly improving profitability.

The growth in sales was driven by the prescription drug business, which requires doctors' prescriptions. Last year, sales in the prescription drug sector reached 475.9 billion KRW, up 11.5% from the previous year. The infusion segment, which accounts for the largest share of sales, slightly decreased to 189 billion KRW in 2021 from 190.1 billion KRW in 2020 due to the impact of COVID-19. However, original prescription drugs with competitive advantages in patient treatment continued to grow and gain market recognition.

By product, the hyperlipidemia treatment 'Livalo' recorded sales of 69.5 billion KRW, up 9.2%, and the enteral nutrition infusion 'Encover' grew 85.1% to 21.7 billion KRW. The rheumatoid arthritis treatment 'Actemra' saw a 24.9% increase to 20 billion KRW in sales as prescriptions increased for severe COVID-19 patient treatment. Additionally, sales of the high-dose iron injection 'Perinject' rose 29.5% to 17.1 billion KRW.

New drugs also successfully established themselves in the market. The domestic first pitavastatin-based improved combination drug for dyslipidemia, 'Livalojet,' launched in October last year, recorded sales of 3.1 billion KRW in the fourth quarter alone. The hemophilia treatment 'Hemlibra' saw a 334.1% increase to 4.4 billion KRW compared to 2020, following the expansion of insurance coverage for pediatric antibody patients in September last year.

Along with this, major over-the-counter drugs also contributed, with artificial tears 'Friends Eye Drop' generating 10.6 billion KRW in sales and wound care band 'HiMom' achieving 7.8 billion KRW.

The company explained that the increase in operating profit was due to sales growth of key products and improved cost ratios resulting from in-house production of raw materials for major products. Despite reflecting a tax penalty of 12.5 billion KRW from a five-year (2016?2020) regular tax audit as corporate tax expenses in the fourth quarter of last year, net profit turned positive with 1.6 billion KRW.

A JW Pharmaceutical official said, "Despite restrictions on business activities due to COVID-19, performance improvement continues with increased sales of major original prescription drugs. Based on stable performance, we will continue to increase investment in research and development (R&D) to accelerate the development of innovative new drugs."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.