Pharma group to expand into Asia

Alliance Boots, owner of Europe’s biggest pharmacy chain, is looking to expand through partnership deals in Asia and Latin America, financed by its own cash flows, it said yesterday.

“We’re looking at key markets where there’s large populations, where there’s long-term growth in healthcare expenditure, and there’s scope for consolidation,” finance director George Fairweather told Reuters.

“Our strategy when entering markets is typically to work in partnership, where we will take an investment that we can seek to grow over time, working closely with the local people leading the business.”