A70 In Europe and the United States, generic drugs account for around 50% of the overall medicinal drugs market, but generics have a much lower penetration rate in Japan, accounting for only around 10% of the market. However, in its bid to curb medical-care costs, the government has started to promote the use of generic drugs. With both domestic pharmaceutical manufacturers and overseas specialist generic-drug manufacturers entering the Japanese generic drug market, competition is expected to intensify.