U.S. drugmaker Merck & Co has formed a joint venture with India's Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd to develop and manufacture branded generic drugs for emerging markets, the two companies said on Monday. The companies did not disclose financial details of the deal. "It will leverage Merck's market presence (and) regulatory competence across emerging markets," Sun's chairman and managing director, Dilip Shanghvi, said at a media briefing. "This will help us optimize the potential for JV products." Faced with stalling sales in mature Western markets, rising competition and loss of patent protection on several of their drugs, Western drugmakers are increasingly looking at emerging markets for growth.
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