Projected returns on investment in research and development (R&D) for the top 12 pharmaceutical companies have fallen to 1.9 per cent, according to research by Deloitte’s Centre for Health Solutions.
Returns are down 1.8 percentage points from 3.7 per cent in 2017, and forecast average peak sales are at $408 million (£302m), making 2018 the lowest level since Deloitte’s R&D report began nine years ago. Returns are down by 8.2 percentage points since 2010, when they stood at 10.1 per cent.
The increase in average cost to develop and win marketing approval for a new drug is behind the declining returns. This has increased in six out of the last eight years, with the average cost now at $2,180 million (£1,616m), almost double the cost back in 2010 of $1,188 million (£880m).
