India leads the way in terms of the sheer volume of US FDA-approved manufacturing plants with over 100, compared to only 28 in China.
In terms of the global competitiveness of Brazil, Russia, India, China and South Africa (BRICS), China remained out in front between 2012 and 2015, with India lagging behind the rest.
Wages in India are significantly lower than anywhere else in ASEAN by annual minimum wage, hourly minimum wage and total cost of labor.
India is projected to jump six places from 11th to 5th in the global manufacturing competitiveness rankings from 2016 to 2020, while China will remain near the top, moving down one place from 1st to 2nd.
For US pharma companies looking to outsource manufacturing to a contract manufacturing organization (CMO) or a contract development and manufacturing organization (CDMO), 12% see India as a preferred destination, while 9% choose China.
Average annual manufacturing wages in China skyrocketed between 2004 and 2013, whereas those in India remained largely stationary.
The global drug discovery outsourcing market is set to grow across the globe up to 2026. This trend is especially prounced in India, which has a predicted compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of around 16%, while China has a predicted CAGR of 13%.
Over 50% of the contract research organizations (CROs) in the Asia-Pacific region are located in India. 18% are in China.
In 1990, less than 25% of the world's manufacturing output came from Asia. Fast-forward to 2013 however, and around 45% of the global total comes from Asia, with China accounting for roughly half of that.