Value of pharmaceutical sales in Norway 2008-2018

The sales of pharmaceuticals in Norway reached the highest ever value in 2018, of almost 28.8 billion Norwegian kroner. The value was reached after an increased almost annually since 2010. Prescription pharmaceuticals generated the highest turnover, of around 24.7 billion Norwegian kroner.

Generic pharmaceuticals in Norway

   On average, the market share of generic drugs in the Norwegian pharmaceutical market increased since 2001 and peaked in 2016 with 49.4 percent. In 2017, their market share had decreased slightly, down to 49.1 percent. A generic drug can enter the market when the patent of a previously patented drug has expired. They are copies of brand-name drugs and contains the same chemical substance.

Pharmaceutical companies

  The pharmaceutical market in Norway is dominated by major international companies with branches in Norway. The leading pharmaceutical company in Norway in 2018 was Pfizer AS, with a market share of 6.2 percent, and was followed by MSD (Norge) AS and Novartis Norge AS, with six and 5.9 percent of the market respectively. Pfizer AS had the highest turnover of pharmaceutical companies in Norway that year, of around 1.5 billion Norwegian kroner.