Samsung Bioepis’ sales in the European Union surpassed $180 million in the second quarter of this year, data showed Wednesday.

Samsung Bioepis headquarters in Songdo, Incheon.

According to the earnings report of Biogen, Samsung Bioepis' marketing partner in EU, the sales of three biosimilar products – Benepali, Flixabi, and Imraldi -- totaled $184.4 million in the second quarter of 2019, up 5.7 percent from the previous quarter.

Benepali (Ingredient: Etanercept) sales fell 2.8 percent quarter on quarter to $120.3 million while those of Flixabi (Ingredient: Infliximab) rose 14.3 percent to $16.8 million. The sales of Imraldi (Ingredient: adalimumab), which was launched in October last year, reached $47.3 million, a 32.4 percent increase from the preceding quarter.

"The drop in Benepali’s sales is due to a temporary effect, as Pfizer, the developer of the original drug Enbrel, strengthened its marketing to compete with biosimilars," the company said. "Imraldi’s market share in Europe grew to 6.6 percent while that of Humira, the original drug, fell to 46 percent."

Samsung Bioepis also said it has received sales approval for Imraldi (U.S. product name: Hadlima) in the United States. That increased the number of Samsung Bioepis biosimilars approved in the U.S. to four. The U.S. launch of Hadlima will come after 2023, however, as Humira's patent is still being protected in the country.

"With the approval, we have now received approval for all three autoimmune disease biosimilars that it initially developed in both the European and U.S. markets," Samsung Bioepis CEO Ko Han-sung said.

The company will continue to work to ensure that more patients have the opportunity to use high-quality biopharmaceuticals at a reasonable price, Ko added.

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