South Korea’s pharmaceutical industry is intensifying its efforts to establish a stronger foothold in the Latin American market, viewing the region as an important source of future growth. The broader strategy focuses on reducing dependence on an export model concentrated on the United States and Europe while expanding business portfolios into emerging markets that offer stronger long-term growth prospects.
According to industry sources, leading domestic pharmaceutical companies have recently secured product approvals as well as large-scale supply agreements across major Latin American countries, including Brazil and Mexico. The portfolio of products being introduced into the region continues to expand beyond aesthetic and plastic surgery offerings such as botulinum toxin to include prescription medicines and advanced digital healthcare solutions. This broader product mix reflects the growing importance of the Latin American market in the overseas expansion strategies of South Korean pharmaceutical companies.
Companies Broaden Regional Footprint Through Local Partnerships
Dongkook Pharmaceutical is moving into the Latin American prescription drug segment with an incrementally modified new drug combination product. The company signed a license and supply agreement with Spanish pharmaceutical company Faes Farma for the benign prostatic hyperplasia treatment ‘Uresco Tablets’. The contract is worth a total of W3.90 billion ($2.83 million) over the next 10 years. Under the agreement, the company plans to sequentially launch the product in 13 Latin American countries including Mexico and Chile and target the local chronic disease market.
Daewoong Pharmaceutical is also strengthening its presence in the Latin American market through its self-developed botulinum toxin product ‘Nabota’. In January, the company reinforced its regional position by signing an export contract for Mexico worth W2.95 billion ($2.14 million) with Latin American partner M8. As a result, Nabota has established a presence across all five of Latin America’s leading aesthetic and plastic surgery markets, including Brazil, Argentina, and Colombia. The company has also expanded its prescription drug business in the region after its diabetes treatment ‘Enblo’ received product approval in Mexico, increasing the number of Latin American countries where the treatment has obtained approval to seven.
Expansion efforts are extending beyond conventional pharmaceuticals into digital healthcare technologies. Dong-A ST entered into a distribution agreement with Cardios, a Brazilian company specializing in cardiac monitoring, for the wearable remote patient monitoring solution ‘HiCardi Plus’. The patch-type solution is capable of measuring electrocardiograms and respiration in real time and is scheduled to be supplied throughout Brazil using local hospital sales networks.
Industry sources indicate that the approach adopted by Korean pharmaceutical companies for the Latin American market has shifted significantly from simple export-driven business models toward locally embedded strategies. Rather than relying solely on overseas shipments, companies are increasingly collaborating with partners that possess extensive knowledge of local market conditions. This strategy enables them to navigate regulatory requirements more effectively while simultaneously establishing distribution infrastructure that supports faster market entry.
