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Use case · Pricing & Cost Benchmarks · API-FDF Price-Cost Spread v.04.2026 · refreshed weekly
Use cases Pricing & Cost Benchmarks API-FDF Price-Cost Spread
Pricing & Cost Benchmarks Buyer view Molecule · palbociclib Data · molecule API price aggregatesData · molecule FDF price aggregates Live

API-FDF Price-Cost Spread

Compute the observable market spread between API bulk cost and FDF selling price per molecule. The empirical basis for conversion-margin and make-vs-buy decisions.

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Example output · palbociclib · API $6,263.26/kg, FDF 125mg x 21 cap pack $21.54 median, 2024
$21.54 USD per 21-cap pack · median · the bid line
n=38 shipments · trade warehouse, last 24 months Indicative

Palbociclib API clears at $6,263/kg median across 10 suppliers and 62 shipments; the 125mg / 21-cap FDF pack clears at $21.54 median across 24 shipments. The conversion math: 2.625g of API per pack, so $16.44 of API cost is embedded in each $21.54 pack at median price. The observable spread is $5.10 per pack, or 24% of the FDF price. That spread covers excipients, formulation overhead, packaging, regulatory amortisation, and margin. Tight.

p25 · aggressive entry
$21.54
deals get done
median · the bid line
$21.54
where the market clears
p75 · premium
$22.21
likely loses
Distribution · 6 price buckets
$18
$20
$21
$22
$23
$25
API median
$6,263/kg
FDF median pack
$21.54
Embedded API cost
$16.44
Conversion spread
24%
30 seconds

How it works

molecule losartan origin IN destination BR
01

Pick a molecule.

Type the molecule INN. The AI agent pulls the API global price percentile and every FDF form-strength-pack combination with declared shipments.

0 HHI 0.42 1
computed · pre-joined · anonymised
02

The AI agent computes the spread.

API USD/kg is converted to embedded API cost per pack using the form-strength-pack composition. The FDF median price minus the embedded API cost equals the observable conversion spread.

brief · cited
Lane concentration · structurally concentrated
HHI0.42
Top-3 share71%
Actionqualify second source
03

Save the spread brief.

Citation-anchored brief with the API band, the FDF band, the embedded API cost per pack, and the conversion margin as both a dollar value and a percentage.

Why a formulation or finance team runs it

Conversion margin, computed empirically.

API plus FDF, in one view.

Two separate clearance distributions, normalised to the same molecule. The conversion math is exact at the form-strength-pack level; no industry rule of thumb.

Make-vs-buy ready.

If the embedded API cost exceeds 80% of the FDF price, the conversion margin is too thin to support in-house manufacturing; toll-manufacture or out-source. The brief surfaces the threshold automatically.

Lane-level confidence.

Each combo carries a shipment count. Combos with fewer than 10 shipments are flagged low-confidence; the headline spread uses the highest-volume combo as the anchor.

Refreshes weekly.

API and FDF aggregates refresh weekly. The spread reruns on every refresh; the brief carries the exact computation timestamp.

What a real chat looks like

Type a molecule. The AI agent returns the spread.

A real chat thread in PharmaDB. Type a question, the AI agent runs the tools, the answer lands as a saveable note.

API-FDF spread · palbociclib
chat · saved 2 min ago
You
For palbociclib, compute the API median bulk cost and the FDF median pack price, then estimate the conversion spread per pack and per gram of active ingredient.
F
Running tool pharmagraph_query
molecule_api_prices ⋈ molecule_fdf_prices · palbociclib · 2024
F
Palbociclib clears at $6,263/kg API median, embedding $16.44 of API per 125mg / 21-cap pack. The FDF pack clears at $21.54 median, leaving a $5.10 spread (24% of FDF price) to cover excipients, formulation overhead, packaging, regulatory amortisation, and margin. Tight by oncology standards: tofacitinib runs $9.37 FDF on $1.21 embedded API (87% spread), abiraterone runs $58.11 FDF on $0.47 embedded API (99%+ spread).
API median
$6,263/kg
FDF median (125mg x 21)
$21.54
Embedded API cost
$16.44
Conversion spread
$5.10 / pack
Cited molecule_api_prices 10 suppliers · 62 shipments molecule_fdf_prices 24 shipments · 125mg x 21 molecule_catalog INN matched
Ask a follow-up... ⌘ ↵
Time-to-answer

Manual workflow vs. PharmaDB.

Manual workflow
Excel · email · syndicated reports
  1. 01 Pull API clearance data for the molecule 2-3 hr
  2. 02 Pull FDF clearance data with form-strength-pack 3-4 hr
  3. 03 Compute embedded API cost per pack 1-2 hr
  4. 04 Build conversion-spread table 2 hr
  5. 05 Cross-check with prior-period spread 1-2 hr
Total cycle time 1-2 days per molecule
PharmaDB
The AI agent · one query · cited
One query.
Pre-joined warehouse. API percentile and FDF form-strength-pack medians are joined at the molecule key. The AI agent returns the spread with the embedded cost math inline.
Total cycle time Under a minute
Run it across your portfolio

Where the conversion spread sits, per molecule.

Eleven molecules · 2024 API median vs FDF median pack price · spread computed at the highest-volume FDF combination.

Apixaban 5mg · 30 tab pack
$4.27
↑ 7%
Imatinib 400mg · 30 tab pack
$9.38
↓ 3%
Tofacitinib 5mg · 60 tab pack
$9.37
↑ 1%
Lenalidomide 10mg · 30 cap pack
$15.22
↓ 5%
Lenalidomide 25mg · 30 cap pack
$19.87
↓ 5%
Lenalidomide 15mg · 21 cap pack
$21.99
↓ 3%
Palbociclib 125mg · 21 cap pack
$21.54
↑ 0%
Enzalutamide 40mg · 28 cap pack
$26.54
↑ 2%
Lenalidomide 25mg · 21 cap pack
$33.67
↓ 4%
Olaparib 150mg · 30 tab pack
$43.96
↑ 1%
Ibrutinib 140mg · 30 cap pack
$45.48
↓ 2%
Abiraterone 250mg · 120 tab pack
$58.11
↑ 0%
IQR (p25–p75) Median USD ↓ YoY price drop · margin pressure · ↑ YoY price rise · tighter market

The API-FDF spread is the conversion-margin lens. PharmaDB joins API and FDF aggregates at the molecule key, computes the embedded API cost per pack, and returns the residual as the observable conversion margin. Refresh cadence is weekly.

FAQ

Frequently asked

How is the embedded API cost computed?+

API USD/kg times the active-ingredient mass per pack. For palbociclib 125mg x 21 capsules, the API mass per pack is 125mg x 21 = 2.625g, embedding $16.44 of API at the $6,263/kg median. The same math applies to every form-strength-pack combination on the molecule.

What if the FDF distribution is bimodal?+

Same combo with two clusters (one near branded price, one near generic price) is surfaced as two rows. The headline spread uses the higher-volume row; the alternative cluster is reported below the headline with its own shipment count and spread.

Why is the palbociclib spread so tight?+

Oncology FDF prices are anchored to generic-entry pricing while the API is still concentrated (10 suppliers). The conversion economics are thin until either API competition deepens (driving the embedded cost down) or the FDF moves into specialty-pricing tiers.

Does this support the make-vs-buy decision directly?+

Yes. If the embedded API cost is above 80% of the FDF price, the conversion margin is too thin to support in-house manufacturing at typical overhead. The brief flags the threshold automatically.

How are excipients and packaging accounted for?+

Not separately. The conversion spread is the residual: FDF price minus embedded API cost. Excipients, packaging, regulatory amortisation, and margin all live in that residual. The reader applies their own cost structure to allocate.

How fresh is the data?+

API and FDF aggregates both refresh weekly. The spread recomputes on every refresh; the catalog row carries the exact timestamp.

Run your question.

Bring the molecule, the lane, or the supplier you're sourcing this week. The AI agent runs it on PharmaDB in 30 minutes. You keep the brief.

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