Cipla in generic supply talks with Pfizer

By Bharghavi Nagaraju

MUMBAI (Reuters) - Cipla Ltd is in talks with a host of global drug makers, including Pfizer Inc, to supply generic products, a top official of the Indian drug maker said, sending its shares up more than 3 percent.

"Yes, we are talking to some companies," Cipla's joint managing director, Amar Lulla, said. "Nothing has been signed yet."

He declined to give a timeline when a deal would be announced or a forecast for the revenue expectation from such a deal. Lulla denied a TV report Cipla may sell a stake as part of the drug supply pact.

At 12:06 p.m. (0636 GMT), shares in Cipla, which has a market value of $5.5 billion, was trading 2.7 percent higher at 328.70 rupees while the main Mumbai market was nearly 1 percent. The stock had gained as much as 3.6 percent earlier.

Global drug makers such as GlaxoSmithKline and Pfizer are increasingly looking to low-cost destinations like India to tie up supplies as they battle falling prices and increasing generic competition.

Demand for generic drugs from Indian producers such as Cipla, Dr Reddy's Laboratories and Ranbaxy Laboratories is booming as nations battle rising healthcare costs.

In June, Dr Reddy's entered into a pact with GlaxoSmithKline under which Glaxo will get access to its drugs and supply them in emerging markets such as Africa, the Middle East, and Latin America.

Like other drugmakers, Pfizer is also grappling with growing risks of a slump in earnings on patent expirations over the next two years, coupled with rising regulatory and scientific hurdles for bringing next-generation drugs to the market.