Sanofi India eyes Combiflam cream launch in January

Pain relief cream to go through 18-month long pilot sales in two southern states

Drugmaker Sanofi India , a unit of France's Sanofi , plans to launch pain relief cream Combiflam across India next January after 18-month-long pilot sales in two southern states, a senior executive said on Tuesday.

"The response (for Combiflam cream) has been positive and we are looking at the extension nationally next year," Anindya Chowdhury, senior director, consumer healthcare, Sanofi India, told Reuters.

The pain relief creams and gels market in India is valued at about 5 billion rupees and is dominated by brands such as Moov, owned by Reckitt Benckiser and Volini, of India's Ranbaxy Laboratories .

Sanofi India also sells about 1.8 billion pain killer tablets, Combiflam, in the country every year, he said.