A¥27.2 billion (US$249 million) contribution from Sagent carried Japan’s Nichi-Iko to sales growth of more than a fifth in the first nine months of its financial year ending 31 March 2018. However, the Japanese player is trading behind its full-year financial forecast, and also saw its operating margin dip during the nine months ended 31 December 2017.
Nichi-Iko’s nine-month sales climbed by 22.0% to ¥143.5 billion, including domestic sales that inched ahead by 1.2% to ¥116.2 billion, thanks entirely to generics sales in Japan rising by 3.8% to ¥106.7 billion