Johannesburg - South Africa’s No.2 drugs maker Adcock Ingram
Holdings [JSE:AIP] has agreed to pay $86m for Indian medicines business Cosme Farma, it
said on Tuesday, bulking up its presence in the high-growth $16bn market.
Under the deal Adcock, which already has a small
manufacturing operation in the Asian country, would pay 90% of the purchase
price up front and in cash and the remainder would be paid after six months.
Goa-based Cosme Farma distributes products in several
therapeutic classes such as gynecology, gastro-intestinal, dermatology and orthopedic.
Adcock has been dwarfed by larger rival Aspen Pharmacare
Holdings [JSE:APN], which has made an aggressive push into overseas markets in recent
years.