Drug-price cuts, intensifying competition and slower sales of temporary-demand products

「A challenging business environment continues, including consumers' continued preference for saving amid high prices, drug price revisions, and intensifying competition both with companies from other industries and within the industry.」

「In the drugstore and dispensing-pharmacy industries, rapid technological advances and increasingly diverse consumer behaviour are expected to be accompanied by accelerating consolidation led by major companies through M&A involving companies from other industries and industry alliances. In addition, as revisions to dispensing fees shift the focus of evaluation from dispensing operations to patient-facing services, competition among companies and the selection of pharmacies are expected to intensify further.」

「We expect restructuring led by major companies through M&A involving companies from other industries and industry consolidation to accelerate.」

「The drugstore and dispensing-pharmacy industries continue to face a difficult operating environment, including persistent consumer cost-consciousness amid high prices, revisions to drug prices and dispensing fees, and intensifying competition among companies from other industries and peers.」

「The drugstore and dispensing-pharmacy industries are expected to remain precarious due to M&A involving companies from other industries, moves toward consolidation, intensifying competition from aggressive store openings, and the impact of revisions to drug prices and dispensing fees.」

「Although the operating environment surrounding the Group has become increasingly difficult due to stronger consumer cost-consciousness and selective purchasing amid high prices and intensifying competition among companies from other industries and peers, sales of health and beauty care products, daily goods and food have increased as opportunities to go out increased and inbound demand recovered, and the performance of individual companies has remained strong.」

「Although demand for cosmetics recovered as opportunities to go out increased and inbound demand recovered, the operating environment surrounding the Group has become increasingly difficult due to declines in prescription prices following drug-price revisions, lower sales of COVID-related products as the pandemic subsided, stronger consumer cost-consciousness and selective purchasing due to high prices, and intensifying competition among companies from other industries and peers.」

「Although demand increased for cosmetics as restrictions on movement were eased, inbound demand recovered, and demand for related products rose due to an increase in cold and influenza cases, the operating environment surrounding the Group has become increasingly difficult due to declines in prescription prices caused by revisions to drug prices and certain dispensing fees, lower sales of COVID-related products as the pandemic subsided, stronger consumer cost-consciousness and selective purchasing due to high prices, and intensifying competition among companies from other industries and peers.」

「Although demand increased for cosmetics as restrictions on movement were eased, inbound demand began to recover gradually, and demand for related products rose due to increases in summer-cold and influenza cases and record heat, the operating environment surrounding the Group has become increasingly difficult due to declines in prescription prices caused by revisions to drug prices and certain dispensing fees, lower sales of COVID-related products as the pandemic subsided, stronger consumer cost-consciousness and selective purchasing due to high prices, and intensifying competition among companies from other industries and peers.」

「The operating environment surrounding the Group has become increasingly difficult due to declines in prescription prices caused by revisions to drug prices and certain dispensing fees, lower sales of COVID-related products as the pandemic subsided, and intensifying competition among companies from other industries and peers as the number of stores increased.」

「The environment surrounding the drugstore industry is expected to remain precarious due to intensifying competition from aggressive store openings and M&A by individual companies, the subsequent decline in sales of COVID-related products, and increased downward pressure from annual drug-price revisions.」

「Although demand for some products increased due to the easing of restrictions on movement and the renewed spread of COVID-19, the operating environment surrounding the industry has become increasingly difficult due to declines in prescription prices caused by the April revisions to drug prices and dispensing fees, substantial reductions in certain dispensing fees, and further intensification of competition to open stores.」

「Although demand for some products increased due to the renewed spread of COVID-19 and record heat, the operating environment surrounding the industry has become increasingly difficult due to the substantial reductions in drug prices and certain dispensing fees implemented in April, sluggish growth in prescriptions filled as infections spread again, and further intensification of competition to open stores.」

「The operating environment surrounding the Company has become increasingly difficult due to the impact of substantial reductions in drug prices and certain dispensing fees in April 2022, the continued slump in demand for cosmetics during the COVID-19 pandemic, lower stay-at-home demand as opportunities to go out increased, and further intensification of competition due to nationwide increases in store numbers.」

「The environment surrounding the drugstore industry is expected to remain precarious, as competition within the industry is becoming more intense due to aggressive store openings and M&A, while dispensing fee schedules and drug prices are being revised more severely than in previous years.」

「The decline in demand for cosmetics and OTC medicines due to increased health awareness and the routine wearing of masks has also continued over an extended period, and the operating environment has become increasingly difficult amid fierce competition with companies from other industries and peers.」

「Although the operating environment in the drugstore industry has become more difficult due to declines in prescription prices following drug-price revisions, a subsequent decline after the sharp increase in demand, centered on hygiene products, in the same period of the previous year, and further intensification of competition with companies from other industries and peers, prescription dispensing has continued to grow.」

「Although the operating environment in the drugstore industry has become more difficult due to declines in prescription prices following drug-price revisions, a temporary drop after the sharp increase in demand, centered on hygiene products, in the same period of the previous year, and further intensification of competition accompanying nationwide increases in store numbers, growth and expansion have continued through the capture of demand for prescription dispensing and food.」

「The environment surrounding the drugstore industry is expected to remain precarious, as competition within the industry is expected to intensify further due to aggressive store openings and M&A by individual companies, while drug-price revisions are also expected to be implemented.」

「In the drugstore industry, demand increased for infection-prevention products such as masks and disinfectant alcohol, as well as stay-at-home products such as food and daily necessities. However, the operating environment surrounding the Group remained precarious, as demand for cosmetics declined due to lifestyle changes such as the promotion of teleworking and constant mask-wearing amid the spread of COVID-19, and the disappearance of inbound demand due to entry restrictions was prolonged.」

「In the drugstore industry, demand increased for infection-prevention products such as masks and disinfectant alcohol, as well as stay-at-home products such as food and daily necessities. However, the operating environment remained precarious due to a decline in the number of prescriptions filled as people refrained from seeking medical care amid the spread of COVID-19, and a prolonged slump in inbound demand due to entry restrictions.」

「In the drugstore industry, demand increased for some products, such as masks, as well as for daily necessities and food, resulting in more store visits. However, the operating environment surrounding the Group remains precarious due to a sharp decline in inbound demand caused by restrictions on cross-border travel and a decline in the number of patients visiting stores for prescription dispensing as fewer people visited medical institutions.」

「The environment surrounding the drugstore industry is also expected to remain precarious, as competition within the industry is becoming more intense and medical fees, dispensing fees and drug prices are expected to be reduced following revisions to medical fees.」

「The difficult operating environment surrounding the Group continued, owing to the temporary rush in demand before the consumption tax increase and the subsequent decline, restrained purchasing due to stronger consumer cost-consciousness, the impact of repeated typhoons, heavy rain and other natural disasters, intensifying competition with rivals to open stores and sales competition across industry boundaries, and soaring labour and logistics costs due to labour shortages.」

「The difficult operating environment surrounding the Group continued, including intensifying competition with rivals to open stores and sales competition across industry boundaries, labour shortages, and soaring labour costs.」

「The difficult operating environment surrounding the drugstore industry continued, including competition with rivals to open stores, the normalisation of sales competition across business formats, changes in consumers' purchasing channels including the expansion of the e-commerce market, and soaring labour and logistics costs.」

「The difficult operating environment surrounding the Group continued, including competition with rivals to open stores, the normalisation of sales competition across business formats, changes in consumers' purchasing channels including the expansion of the e-commerce market, soaring labour and logistics costs, and declines in prescription prices due to revisions to drug prices and dispensing fees.」

「The difficult operating environment surrounding the drugstore industry continued, owing to competition with rivals to open stores, the normalisation of sales competition across business formats, changes in consumers' purchasing channels including the expansion of the e-commerce market, soaring labour and logistics costs, and declines in prescription prices due to revisions to drug prices and dispensing fees.」

「The difficult operating environment surrounding the drugstore industry continued, owing to competition with rivals to open stores, the normalisation of sales competition across business formats, changes in consumers' purchasing channels including the expansion of the e-commerce market, soaring labour and logistics costs, and declines in prescription prices due to revisions to drug prices and dispensing fees.」

「The operating environment surrounding the drugstore industry has also remained difficult, as aggressive store openings and price competition by peers and companies from other industries and business formats have been compounded by scale expansion among peers through M&A, changes in consumers' purchasing channels accompanying the expansion of e-commerce, and rising labour and construction costs.」

「The operating environment surrounding the drugstore industry has also remained difficult, as aggressive store openings by peers and companies from other industries and business formats and the resulting price competition have been compounded by scale expansion among peers through M&A, changes in consumers' purchasing channels accompanying the expansion of e-commerce, and continued increases in labour and construction costs.」

「The operating environment surrounding the drugstore industry has also remained difficult, as aggressive store openings and price competition by peers and companies from other industries and business formats have been compounded by scale expansion through M&A, increasingly homogeneous and fierce competition, and labour shortages.」

「The operating environment surrounding the drugstore industry has also become increasingly difficult, as aggressive store openings and price competition by peers have been accompanied by entries from other industries and business formats, as well as increasingly fierce and homogeneous competition.」

「The operating environment surrounding the drugstore industry remained difficult due to lower drug prices and a substantial overhaul of the reimbursement system following the revision of medical fees, a substantial decline in sales of hepatitis C treatments, and slower sales of inbound-related products, amid intensifying competition with companies from other industries and business formats.」

「The difficult conditions continued due to lower drug prices and a substantial overhaul of the reimbursement system following the revision of medical fees, a substantial decline in sales of hepatitis C treatments, slower sales of inbound-related products, intensifying competition with companies from other industries and business formats, and competition among rival companies to open stores and compete on price.」

「The difficult conditions continued due to lower drug prices and a substantial overhaul of the reimbursement system following the revision of medical fees, the end of the rapid expansion in sales of hepatitis C treatments, intensifying competition with companies from other industries and business formats, and slower sales of inbound-related products.」

「The operating environment surrounding the drugstore industry has changed substantially from the past and remains uncertain, owing to drug-price cuts and major revisions to the reimbursement system accompanying medical fee revisions, increasingly intense competition with companies from other industries and business formats, and slower sales of hepatitis C treatments and inbound-related products whose sales surged sharply last year.」