| |JULY 20239PHARMA EXPORTS EXPECTED TO TOUCH $28 BILLION IN FY 24: PHARMEXCIL CHIEFWHO APPROVES EMERGENCY USE LISTING TO SK BIOSCIENCE'S COVID-19 VACCINE, SKYCOVIONEUdaya Bhaskar, Director General of the Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India (Pharmexcil), a body under the Department of Commerce, predicted on Tuesday that Indian pharmaceutical exports could reach USD 28 billion in the current fiscal year, up from USD 25.39 billion in FY 23. Speaking to reporters today, he stated that during the current fiscal year, exports grew by more than 10% in April and 0.7 percent in May, respectively."In fiscal year 23, we exported $25.39 billion in pharmaceutical goods, representing a 3.25 percent increase." When most commodities are struggling, India pharma made it and achieved it despite numerous headwinds and global obstacles," Bhaskar responded to a question."I am optimistic that we will reach around $28 billion in FY 24." That is my expectation," he added.Justifying the aim, the official stated that the US market, which accounted for more than 31 percent of total exports last year, has stabilised, which is a positive indicator predicting continued growth.Due to disruptions in some nations, exports from the Commonwealth of Independent States (Russia and others) fell by 8.42 percent to $1.15 billion he said.In response to another question, he stated that the US Food and Drug Administration authorities' inspection on Indian manufacturing sites has not begun and has yet to reach pre-COVID levels.He stated that the Ministry of Commerce is aware of the problem and is raising it with the United States. POSK bioscience, a global innovative vaccine and biotech company dedicated to promoting human health from prevention to cure, announced that its Covid-19 vaccine, SKYCovione, has received the WHO Emergency Use Listing.SKYCovione is a self-assembled nanoparticle vaccine for SARS-CoV-2 that targets the receptor binding domain of the SARS-CoV-2 Spike protein. The vaccine was created in collaboration with the Institute for Protein Design (IPD) at the University of Washington SCHOOL OF MEDICINE and employs GSK's pandemic adjuvant. SKYCovione was developed with funding from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation and the Coalition for Epidemic Preparedness Innovations (CEPI), as well as support from the European Union (EU)'s Horizon 2020 Programme.According to the findings of a phase III clinical trial, SKYCovione induced neutralising antibody responses against the SARS-CoV-2 parental strain and had a typical safety and reactogenicity profile. Following that, in May 2023, the Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) approved SKYCovione (known as SKYCovion in the UK) for active immunisation to prevent Covid-19 caused by SARS-CoV-2 in individuals 18 years of age and older.SKYCovione is based on recombinant protein vaccine technology, which has previously been used to develop vaccines such as influenza and HPV vaccines. The vaccine can be stored at temperatures ranging from 2 to 8 degrees Celsius, making it suitable for use in countries lacking ultra-low cold chain storage facilities. The ease of distribution contributes to greater vaccine access in low-income countries. PO
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