Strong rebound for Swiss pharmaceutical exports to Russia. According to the Confederation’s customs, in February 2023, over one year, they have increased by 40% since the conflict in Ukraine. Reminder: Medicines are considered humanitarian products and therefore exempt from Western sanctions.
It is above all Switzerland that benefits from this regulation, which exempts medicines from Western sanctions vis-à-vis Russia. Because the Swiss pharmaceutical industry is its main export sector. Over the past twelve months, Swiss pharmaceutical exports to Russia have reached a record level: more than two billion dollars. Before the war, they amounted to a billion and a half.
Stored drugs
There are several reasons for this increase: Russians have indeed consumed more drugs, resuming their medical care after the Covid-19 pandemic. Another reason: patients and hospitals have also stored many drugs, to anticipate possible supply problems, following the war in Ukraine.
The Russian subsidiaries of Roche and Novartis
A situation that benefits the Swiss groups Roche and Novartis which have subsidiaries in the country. Russia is only Switzerland’s 23rd largest trading partner. Last year, Swiss exports to Moscow amounted to 3.2 billion dollars.
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