Three MOUs signed so far in Japan roadshow: CEPD

By Amy Su The Council for Economic Planning and Development (CEPD) signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) yesterday with Daiwa Securities Group Inc to cooperate in training and helping companies seek initial public offerings (IPOs). It was one of three MOUs signed during a government-led "Investment in Taiwan" roadshow to Japan, the council said in a statement. The weeklong roadshow, which began on Sunday and ends on Friday, will include two investors' conferences in Tokyo and Osaka and about 30 company visits, the council said. GlycoNex Inc (台灣醣聯生技醫藥), a Taiwanese biotechnology firm, also signed an MOU with three Japanese firms — including Mitsubishi Gas Chemical Co — to build a pharmaceutical plant in Taiwan, the council said, while the third MOU was signed by Taiwan Land Development Corp (台灣土地開發) and Med-1 Asia to promote Japanese coming to Taiwan for long-stays and to cooperate on endowment business. The Taiwanese delegation, including 226 business representatives and government officials, is being led by Council for Economic Planning and Development Minister Christina Liu (劉憶如). "Other than seeking investment, the major goal of the roadshow will be to build closer trade connections with Japan, as recent uncertainties in the US and eurozone economies reminded us of the importance of enhancing the intra-regional trade in Asia," Liu said on Wednesday in Taipei. Daiwa Securities Group, Japan's second-largest brokerage, agreed with the Taiwanese government's effort to seek cross-border investment banking opportunities, CEO Takashi Hibino told a press conference in Tokyo yesterday. He said Daiwa and the council would encourage mergers and acquisitions and IPOs in Taiwan and Japan.

 

Daiwa opened a branch in Taiwan in 1993, which employs about 100 workers, said Hibino, who became CEO in April. The unit accounts for less than 10 percent of total revenue from Asia, he said, adding that he currently has no plans to boost the headcount for operations there. Taiwan Stock Exchange chairman Schive Chi (薛琦) is scheduled to meet with some Japanese firms in Tokyo this week to discuss launching stock listings in Taiwan.

Taiwan hospital transplants HIV-infected organs into patients

News DeskAugust 29, 2011 11:54 (Antler)A hospital in Taiwan mistakenly transplanted HIV-infected organs into five patients, the Associated Press reports. The organs all came from one patient who died last week. A staff member at National Taiwan University Hospital, one of the country's best regarded hospitals, did the transplants after hearing the wrong message on the telephone. He thought he heard the phrase "non-reactive," but the actual word given was "reactive," according to a hospital statement. The hospital procedure to double-check the test result was not done. "We deeply apologize for the mistake," a hospital statement said. An official from the hospital in Taipei told AP the five patients are now being treated with anti-AIDS drugs. Health department official Shih Chung-liang said officials will look into the incident and decide how to handle the situation and whether to punish the hospital. The hospital has until the end of Tuesday to produce a detailed report on the incident, Voice of America reports. Doctors told VOA the patients will probably contract the disease. The patients' treatment will be complicated because they must take medicine to stop their bodies from rejecting their new organs, Sky News reports. A health official in the city where the patient who died lived, Yao Ke-wu, called the transplant incident a result of "appalling negligence."

New animal acupuncture program pushed by NTU

Two dogs that were once paralyzed and can now walk thanks to a new acupuncture treatment from the National Taiwan University (NTU) Veterinary Hospital were introduced at a press conference yesterday. Results from the first veterinary Oriental medicine acupuncture clinic and its educational medical services were presented at the press conference. A 13-year-old schnauzer named King Kong became totally paralyzed after falling down at a pet shop last year and a 17-year-old beagle named Chiu-chiu was diagnosed with bone spurs and became paralyzed two years ago. After being diagnosed by Western medicine as unsuitable for surgery, their owners turned to acupuncture and now both dogs are back on their feet and can walk again without assistance after months of treatment. The man who saved the two canines, chief veterinarian Liu -Ching-ming (劉金鳴) said acupuncture treatment for animals had been practiced for centuries in China. However, the method had only become a trend in global veterinary medicine over the past decade and was introduced at the hospital two years ago, he said. In the nearly two years of acupuncture treatment at NTU's -Veterinary Hospital, the clinic has handled about 150 cases, with a success rate of about 80 percent, Liu said. Oriental medicine and acupuncture provide alternative treatment methods that can support Western medicine, but Liu said that injured or sick pets should still be given a Western medical diagnosis before taking oriental medicine. The cases in which animal acupuncture has proved most effective are those when a paralyzed animal is diagnosed as being unsuitable for general anesthetic, when invasive treatment is unsuitable or when the animal needs to recover faster after surgery. Acupuncture treatment costs between NT$800 and NT$1,000, Liu said, adding that sometimes owners were unwilling to pay this much for treatment, or believed it would take too long. In addition, acupuncture is unable to heal animals that have been paralyzed for too long and is unsuitable if the animal suffers from bad physical injuries, such as a severe spinal fracture, he said. NTU's School of Veterinary Medicine currently has acupuncture programs to train future veterinarians through internships at the hospital, Liu said. NTU College of Bioresources and Agriculture dean Hsu Yuan-tai (徐源泰) said sometimes veterinarians have a harder time treating their animal patients than doctors who treat human patients. Because animals are unable to communicate their symptoms, vets must observe them carefully to better understand their condition and needs, he said, adding that while people all have the same body structure, vets have to treat a wide range of very different animal species.

中國藥品低利潤時代 驅動併購與產品創新!!

今年醫藥行業利潤增幅下降已成定局 鉅亨網  招標壓低藥價且成本上升，上市藥企上半年利潤增速同比驟降五成 "今年醫藥行業利潤增幅下降已成定局。"中國醫藥（600056）企業管理協會會長於明德在近期發布的"中國醫藥產業形勢分析"報告中作出了這樣的預測。基於藥價下降以及原材料成本上升的壓力，有業內人士表示了對下半年醫藥企業業績的擔憂，甚至認為，下半年醫藥行業會面臨與2004年和2006年類似的困境，出現利潤增幅急劇下降的情況。對於后市，多數分析師認為受利好政策推動，下半年利潤增速有望出現回升。

前5月上市藥企利潤增速同比降50.7%  於明德在報告中指出，5月末，國家統計局的數字顯示，整個醫藥行業主營業務收入已經完成5470.4億元，比上年同期增長28.9%，而利潤的增幅只有18.5%，比2010年1-5月份醫藥行業的利潤增幅37%低近19個百分點。醫藥行業子行業中，衛生材料、醫用輔料和中成藥表現略好，化學原料藥、化學制劑表現不理想。出口方面，醫用輔料和醫療器械表現較好，化學原料藥出口銷售額大，但利潤率較低。值得關注的是，醫藥類上市公司利潤出現了反常的低於行業平均增速的現象。據於明德介紹，今年1-5月，上市公司的利潤總額增幅為18.5%，而去年同期這一數據為69.2%，出現了50.7個百分點的大幅回落。截至8月22日，醫藥板塊已有88家上市公司公布2011年中報，其中有71家上半年實現了主營收入同比增長，而其中有26家凈利潤同比下降。醫藥類上市公司如中匯醫藥（000809）﹑ST四環（000605）﹑萊茵生物（002166）﹑鑫富藥業（002019）﹑東北制藥（000597）﹑亞寶藥業（600351）﹑海普瑞（002399）等都出現了較大幅度的虧損，而中匯醫藥營業業績降幅最大。據中匯醫藥7月27日公布的中報，在2011年上半年公司實現主營業務收入7999.50萬元，比去年同期增加14.45%，但是，凈利潤卻虧損了287.51萬元，比去年同期下降了412.96%，總毛利率也比去年同期下降了3.01%。公司稱，由於中藥原材料價格上漲及人力資源成本增加，盈利能力受到影響。 ST四環的凈利潤降幅僅次於中匯醫藥，為194.56%，其中報顯示，今年1-6月營業收入同比增長19.75%至1978.31萬元，但是由於人力成本上升、原材料價格上漲，凈利潤仍同比減少約52.04萬元。 有的上市公司出現了營業收入和凈利潤雙降的情況，如東北制藥凈利潤同比大幅下降97.62%至4076322.21元，其營業收入也同比下降16.86%至261346.98萬元。對於營業收入和凈利潤都出現下降的情況，公司解釋，由於處於產品結構轉型，把重點由原材料向制劑產品過渡，而投入了較大費用，此外，報告中提及原材料價格上漲也是成本增加的重要原因。 那么，醫藥行業的龍頭上市公司績效如何呢？記者梳理中報發現，雖然多家上市公司的凈利潤同比都有大幅上漲，但是，較去年增幅都有所下降，毛利率則由於成本的上升無奈下跌。如上海醫藥（601607），作為一家大型醫藥產業集團，公司上半年醫藥工業銷售收入42.1億元，較上年同期增長11.0%，而毛利率為45.3%，同比下降3.3個百分點，究其原因，上海醫藥闡明主要是受到上半年國家發改委第27輪降價，各地基本藥物招標帶來的新一輪降價，以及通貨膨脹等引起的中藥材和化學制藥原材料價格上漲等因素的影響。 "今年上半年醫藥行業出現利潤銳減，主要就是政策性降價的壓力，唯低價是取的招標政策，使得藥價下降，另外就是原材料和人力成本的上升。"光大證券（601788）醫藥行業分析師姚杰在接受理財一周報記者采訪時透露。

"利潤增幅下降成定局" 目前，給出今年三季度預告的上市公司中，只有少數幾家預計凈利潤增幅高過50%，如預計增幅最大的是紫鑫藥業（002118），其中報預計2011年1-9月凈利潤能有14700萬-15200萬元，比上年同期增長幅度為134.64%～142.62%；貴州百靈（002424）和精華制藥（002349）都預計凈利潤比上年同期增長五成到七成。而華邦制藥（002004）﹑益盛藥業（002566）﹑眾生藥業（002317）等雖然預期利潤率會有所增長，但增幅都低於50%。此外，有些醫藥公司則預期利潤率同比會大幅下降，如東北制藥預期三季度凈利潤-9003.54萬元，下降151.07%，而海普瑞則預計2011年1-9月凈利潤下降三到五成。 "銷售收入超預期增長是肯定的，預期23%~24%，利潤增幅下降成定局。"於明德會長在報告中講出了他對下半年醫藥行業的形勢分析，"生產增長幅度是正常的，利潤的增長幅度卻急劇下降，這種局面今年非常不幸會被重復，現在距離年末還有一段時間，會不會扭轉？我想不大會扭轉了。"至於利潤增幅下降已成定局的原因，他認為，利潤增長慢最主要的是政策因素，"現在安徽的經驗（招標壓低價格）就注定了今年我們必定要重復2004年和2006年整個產業受影響，受打擊，走出的馬鞍形。"對此，姚杰則認為，影響下半年醫藥行業的政策主要是低價招標、"限抗"（《抗菌藥物的管理辦法》）以及公立醫院改革。"下半年，降價政策會相對緩和。其次，在各省招標完畢和醫保目錄增補結束后，相關受益企業和品種需求增加，盈利會出現改善，下半年盈利增速有望提高。預計全年凈利潤增長率在25%左右。"他還補充道，受新版GMP（藥品生產質量管理規範）推動，醫藥行業下半年的投資力度還會增長，現在有關部委已經注意到醫藥招標的"安徽經驗"在推廣過程中暴露出的問題，招標政策有望改進和完善。對於9月份馬上要開始實行的《抗菌藥物的管理辦法》，中投證券的醫藥行業分析師周銳在他的研報中稱，"抗菌藥物管理辦法實施短期對醫藥行業的負面影響有可能低於市場預期。本次抗菌藥物管理辦法被稱為'史上最嚴'，根據我們的調研，'嚴'短期將體現在品種上，在抗菌藥物使用比例上并沒有直接的措施限制使用，抗菌藥物使用量的下降幅度是個緩慢體現的過程，短期不會急劇下降。"

龍頭公司或受益整合 目前，醫藥制造業的利潤增速放緩已是不爭的事實。中國醫藥行業整體發展水平的減速，也為龍頭企業實施兼并重組提供有利契機，相關的大企業在行業整合中將獲益。 5月初，商務部發布的《全國藥品流通行業發展規劃綱要（2011-2015年）》提出，到2015年要形成1-3家年銷售額過千億元的全國性大型醫藥商業集團，20家年銷售額過百億元的區域性藥品流通企業；藥品批發百強企業年銷售額占藥品批發總額85%以上，藥品零售連鎖百強企業年銷售額占藥品零售企業銷售總額60%以上；連鎖藥店占全部零售門店的比重提高到2/3以上。姚杰認為，下半年醫藥行業整合的趨勢會更加明顯，除卻政策上生物醫藥"十二五"規劃的影響，大型醫藥企業有意愿通過并購做大，此外，醫藥行業中小企業過多，由於成本高企而藥價低所以這些小企業頗有壓力。據了解，目前我國的醫藥流通企業總量多達13000家，而規模實力和利潤水平比較理想的企業僅占其中極少數。由於該行業內擠入了過多企業，導致企業之間出現惡性競爭。同時，市場分割和地方保護主義也阻礙了國內統一大市場的形成，限制了公平競爭，制約了藥品批發配送業務的適度集中和高效性。周銳指出，"相關部門此次表態意在加快醫藥行業的整合速度，這對於醫藥行業中的龍頭企業構成實質性的利好，將有利於龍頭企業進一步并購、擴張，成為千億元銷售額的企業，我們看好全國性龍頭國藥控股旗下兩大子公司——資金狀況有望改善的一致藥業（000028），估值低、有戰略價值的國藥股份

台大愛滋醫療疏失代價與經驗!!

愛滋事件台大下「封口令」　擔心巨額賠償 呂妮2011年8月29日台大醫院爆發有史以來最嚴重的醫療疏失，讓愛滋病患器官移植給無辜的病人，面對各界的指控，醫院內部壟罩在低氣壓中。對此，院方下達封口令，對於媒體的追問醫療人員全都噤口。相關人員也擔憂感染病患會提起訴訟，恐要求巨額賠償。台大醫院昨（28）日表示，該院對移植器官設有4道把關關卡，除了第一關「上傳病歷到電腦」之外，後3道卻未落實，明顯疏失。參與撰寫「台大器官捐贈小組標準作業程序」的台大醫學部主任柯文哲也坦言，作業程序中並未寫到「確認」部分，也沒有想到該由誰做確認。目前台大醫院內部已展開調查，必須在衛生署給的最後期限提交完整報告。據《聯合報》報導，一名參與移植手術的醫師透露，院方經過檢討發現，跨醫院捐贈器官是疏漏關鍵之一，因為無法透過電腦查閱他院的病歷及檢驗報告，只要有一人疏失，移植團隊根本無從糾正。這名醫師表示，愛滋捐贈者是來自新竹南門醫院，台大醫院獲知有人願意捐器官後，立即派移植協調護理師前往，並由專人把血液檢體送回台大檢驗。他指出，這名病人並非台大病患，也無病例，加上器官捐贈須與時間賽跑，往往只能靠電話聯繫，若在電話裡將reactive（陽性）聽成non-reative（陰性），就會出錯。台大犯了前所未有的錯，其他醫院若沒有記取教訓，恐怕將來還會有人重蹈覆轍。院方管理人士也透露，面對未來可能的民事、刑事處罰，刑事部分依照經驗，有機會爭取緩起訴，但比較擔心的是民事訴訟，必須賠償受害病患巨額金錢，萬一醫護人員被感染也得賠償。