Bareksa.com - PT Industri Jamu dan Farmasi Sido Muncul Tbk, Indonesia's biggest herbal medicine producer, plans to acquire a pharmaceutical company for about 150 billion rupiah ($13.1 million), its chief executive said.

Sido Muncul is doing due diligence on PT Berlico Mulia Farma, which has more than 80 products such as cough and flu syrup, vitamins and indigestion pills, and may expand further in the pharmaceutical sector, Irwan Hidayat told Reuters.

Traditional medicine companies in Southeast Asia have big plans to grow amid strong investor interest, as an increasingly health-conscious middle class rises in the region.

Last December, Sido Muncul became the first herbal medicine company to list on the Jakarta stock exchange. Its shares are now trading over 40 percent higher than its initial public offering price.

Indonesian companies are expected to benefit from a national healthcare scheme which was launched at the start of this year with the aim of extending insurance coverage to its 240 million people by 2019.

"The healthcare insurance in Indonesia will lead to a tremendous rise in healthcare spending," Hidayat said over the phone.

"Both herbal and pharmaceutical medicines are needed. In the future, we hope to expand further in the pharmaceutical sector," Hidayat said, declining to give more details.

(Source : Reuters)