Aspen, GSK team up to extend foothold in Japan

Johannesburg - South Africa's Generic drugmaker Aspen Pharmacare [JSE:APN] has teamed up with shareholder GlaxoSmithKline to extend its foothold in Japan, a lucrative market for low-cost medicines, it said on Thursday.

Aspen, Africa's biggest generic drugmaker, would sell a 25% stake in a newly established Japanese business to GlaxoSmithKline, which already owns about 12% of Aspen.

Under the deal, GlaxoSmithKline would transfer distribution rights of certain products to the new entity, Aspen Japan. GSK would also provide Aspen Japan with a pipeline for a number generic medicines.

Politicians in the world's second-biggest pharmaceutical market are lobbying for more generic drugs to go on sale to bring down the cost of healthcare for a rapidly ageing population.

Shares in Aspen climbed 4.3% to R354.51 by 12:50, outpacing 1.5% gain in the JSE Top-40 index.