Middle East

The return to normal lifestyles out of the home is driving retail volume and current value sales of analgesics in 2023. Adults and children alike are more exposed to common colds and viruses requiring pain relief. Children in school are no longer…

Analgesics in the Middle East and Africa faces challenges against the backdrop economic slowdown. Self-medication, generics and product innovation have positively influenced demand, but lower consumer confidence and economic turmoil in key markets…

In 2023, there have been stock shortages for some analgesics in key distribution channels in Saudi Arabia, resulting from producers, suppliers, and/or distributors. As a result, end consumers have been switching to alternative products containing the…

In the United Arab Emirates, analgesics can be categorised into two groups: products from international brands, and those from regional brands, which tend to be priced lower. By the end of the review period, the majority of analgesics brands were…

The briefing introduces the Cities Households Necessities Spending Index. The index ranks 1,075 cities by household expenditure on non-discretionary items, namely food, housing, and clothing and footwear. This analysis focuses on 160 major cities.…

The stabilisation of the Iraqi dinar in 2023 and rising local production led to price drops across consumer health in 2023, boosting demand across the board. Tighter regulation and more control over imports benefited the industry generally, while the…

Consumer health is expected to register a healthy pace of current value growth in 2023. After a successful vaccination programme in 2021, society opened up quickly in Israel. With society returning to greater normality in 2023, common illnesses are…

In 2023, consumer health products in Jordan are witnessing notable changes driven by a combination of factors. The industry has experienced a decline from its peaks in 2020 and 2021 when Jordanians rushed to purchase OTC products like analgesics and…

The harsh climatic conditions in Kuwait with extreme heat, rising pollution and large amounts of dust continue to play a key role in driving demand across key OTC categories, in particular analgesics and cough, cold and allergy (hay fever) remedies.…

The socioeconomic crisis remained a drag on growth in consumer health in 2023. High inflation, currency depreciation and restricted access to foreign currency are affecting the entire economy. Political instability has made the situation worse as…

Although cost-of-living crises have been putting pressure on consumers’ purchasing power in a number of countries in Middle East and Africa, they can also provide momentum for consumer health sales. Some consumers, unable to afford visits to a…

Consumer health is registering healthy growth rates in Oman in 2023. Growth is being driven by the increasing presence of OTC brands, increasing consumer awareness, an expanding population and an increase in self-medication. Easing inflationary…

Consumer health registered strong sales growth in Qatar in 2023 thanks to strong purchasing power and rising interest in leading healthy lifestyles. The country’s high obesity rate has combined with the sharpened focus on health and wellbeing that…

Consumer health is set to maintain solid current value growth in 2023, with increases across most categories. Analgesics, and cough, cold and allergy (hey fever) remedies are expected to remain the largest OTC categories. Due to their maturity and…

2023 is set to be a strong year for consumer health in the United Arab Emirates. Many categories are expected to see robust current value growth, underpinned by an increase in online distribution channels, as well as an increasingly savvy,…

The normalisation of consumer lifestyles has hastened the return of common coughs and cold in Israel, with a notable uplift in schools. In April 2022, the mask mandate was removed, aside from specific locations such as hospitals and medical clinics,…

The pandemic has led consumers to become more concerned about the products they consume, and more conscious of side-effects, with some people therefore preferring to purchase herbal/traditional products instead of standard products, or those needing…

The increasingly dusty weather in the United Arab Emirates is causing a rise in allergies and respiratory illnesses amongst consumers. In particular, in August 2022 there were so many dust storms that doctors in Abu Dhabi and Dubai issued a warning…

The incidence of head lice is rising back to normal levels in 2023 as children circulate freely in schools and at social gatherings, and kids play close together. With retail volume sales back to pre-pandemic levels in 2022, demand for…

In 2023, dermatologicals is set to return to solid current value growth, although performances are expected to vary widely across categories. For instance, hair loss treatments is expected to continue to benefit from consumers’ perception of their…

Hair loss treatments in the United Arab Emirates has been experiencing increased fragmentation, due to the emergence of numerous new entrants, with the value share of the smallest players, included under “others” set to rise above 50% for the first…

Dietary supplements is a sizeable product area in Israel, only second behind analgesics, and it is expected to register strong current value growth in 2023, and the highest rate during the review period. The COVID-19 pandemic has accelerated the…

Dietary supplements is set to maintain dynamic current value growth in 2023. After the onset of the pandemic, consumers educated themselves on the health benefits of specific ingredients, and became particularly interested in dietary supplements with…

Dietary supplements has witnessed a surge in products targeting beauty and anti-ageing, which reflects consumers’ growing desire for holistic wellness solutions and the “beauty from within” trend. Supplements such as co-enzyme Q10, which is known for…

The return to relatively normal patterns of eating out at restaurants, combined with more stressful on-the-go lifestyles, is leading to an increase in digestive health issues in 2023. In retail volume terms, there is a modest increase in sales of…

As leisure and entertainment are on the rise in Saudi Arabia, including dining out, more people are facing digestive problems. Furthermore, during the holy month of Ramadan, more people experience digestive disorders such as bloating, heartburn, acid…

Gastrointestinal disorders such as gastroesophageal reflux disease (GERD), peptic ulcers, and gastritis are relatively common in the United Arab Emirates. Digestive remedies such as proton pump inhibitors are effective in treating these conditions by…

Eye care is expected to see stronger growth in 2023 compared to the previous year, with healthy retail volume and current value growth. The product area has seen consistent strong performance over the review period and during the pandemic. The…

Modern daily life is leading consumers to spend a significant amount of time in front of their phone and computer screens. This abundance of screen time has led to a greater proportion of the population developing eye health problems, be it eye…

Eye drops is the leading format for eye-related treatments in the United Arab Emirates, for several reasons. First, eye drops offer ease of application, allowing individuals to self-administer the treatment directly to the affected area. Second, they…

The briefing examines how personalised healthcare market is evolving. The report also provides insights on the countries most ready to use personalised healthcare services, and the potential impact on the pharmaceuticals and medical sectors.

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries. In 2023, global inflation is expected to ease from its peak in 2022, but remaining significantly above-trend. Geopolitical risks and uncertainty in the energy market are…

This report examines inflation levels and drivers globally and in key countries. Global inflation is reaching a peak, although geopolitical risks and uncertainty in the energy market remain key risks. The impact varies between countries, with…

The coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic has triggered the most severe global recession since World War II. In Q4 2020, the end of the pandemic started as countries began administering effective vaccines among the population; however, vaccine distribution…

The health and wellness trend has accelerated in Israel since the COVID-19 pandemic hit in 2020. Locals are increasingly aware of what they put into their body and seek out more natural products when it comes to consumer health. This holistic…

In 2023, herbal/traditional products is set to continue to see growth across all categories in current value terms, as health-consciousness was accelerated by the pandemic, and this is a trend that has endured and continues to affect consumers’…

Especially since the COVID-19 pandemic, there has been a strong emphasis on preventive health in the United Arab Emirates. This has been fuelling a surge in demand for herbal/traditional dietary supplements, including ginseng, garlic, echinacea, and…

Tobacco smokers are considered at a higher risk when it comes to COVID-19 and this caused an increase in smoking cessation aids during the pandemic, as many locals tried to quit smoking. While locals are now learning to live with the virus in 2023,…

To combat the Kingdom’s relatively high smoking prevalence, legislation and taxes on tobacco products have been implemented to deter purchases of such products. For example, in 2021, the government banned the sale of tobacco to children under 18,…

In an effort to promote a healthier population and support the wellbeing of the local community, the government of the United Arab Emirates is actively encouraging smokers to quit. This includes the establishment of smoking cessation clinics at…

In 2023, paediatric consumer health continues to witness a strong performance, with current value sales predicted to be higher than in the previous year. In the years following the pandemic, the increase spread of common viruses and lower levels of…

One of the actions the Saudi government took to limit the spread of COVID-19 was to close all schools and universities (with only remote learning permitted), and to suspend all social and community activities for children, including sports. This had…

In the United Arab Emirates, there is wide knowledge of consumer health, due to the diverse make-up of the population. However, there are a significant number of parents who continue to be hesitant to give children over-the-counter medications due to…

Demand for sleep aids remains strong in 2023, with everyday lifestyle issues and security concerns leading to sleep issues. The COVID-19 pandemic had a very strong impact on sleep in Israel and caused a surge in sleep deprivation and insomnia, which…

COVID-19 led to a strong rise in the growth rate for sleep aids, as the stresses and pressures of the pandemic boosted demand for these products. In addition to the fear of falling ill, many Saudi consumers also faced economic uncertainty and nagging…

Increasing awareness of sleep health is a significant trend set to drive the solid current value growth of sleep aids in the United Arab Emirates in 2023. As people are becoming more conscious of the vital role sleep plays in maintaining physical and…

In 2023, Israelis have fully returned to gyms with many placing a bigger focus on health and fitness since the COVID-19 pandemic. With greater opportunities to get fit and workout, sports nutrition products are enjoying strong growth in current value…

With all sports centres, activities, and events suspended for significant periods during the COVID-19 pandemic, sports nutrition suffered a drastic decline in 2020. Consumers were not able to work out as regularly as they did previously, meaning that…

The rise of new players in sports protein powder in the United Arab Emirates indicates a growing fitness and health culture, and provides consumers with a wider range of products from which to choose to align with their preferences. The explosion in…

The COVID-19 pandemic has disrupted the consumer goods market in Sub-Saharan Africa, with recovery expected to take place over time. Consumers expenditure has been negatively affected, as value seeking consumers shift to essential products. The…