MUMBAI: IOL Chemicals and Pharmaceuticals Ltd., the world’s biggest producer of ibuprofen, is set for its best month in more than two years as the prolonged shutdown of China’s Hubei province boosts prices of the non-prescription painkiller.
The Ludhiana, India-based firm supplies about a third of the world’s requirement of the drug, with 10% coming from China’s Hubei Biocause Pharmaceutical Co. Prices of ibuprofen have risen by $3 per kilogram in the last few weeks to about $18 and may hit $20 if supplies from Hubei remain unavailable, said Vijay Kumar Garg, joint managing director at IOL.