IN FOCUS: BIOCON ‘ THERE WILL ALWAYS BE A MARKET FOR DIABETES DRUGS’

Biocon is a company that makes drugs for treating diseases such as cancer and diabetes. It is Asia’s largest manufacturer of insulin by volume.

The business is really at the cutting edge of science – it has received approvals in America, the EU and Japan for selling its products.

This excites us because what it is doing is bringing down the cost of drugs for common illnesses.

One woman is diagnosed with breast cancer every 19 seconds. The market is large and the cost of these drugs is a fraction of what we pay here. Diabetes is growing across the world and it has really good insulin products.

It also has international joint ventures with massive companies for specific drugs. It has just received another approval in the US, so we know its science works. It is as good as anyone else.

If you look at similar companies around the world, this company is significantly cheaper. It has huge growth potential.

It doesn’t share all its research pipelines with us, so there could be some blockbuster products coming from its scientists. It’s a great company, run by pretty good management. benefits of formalisation are only just beginning to be seen and will continue for many, many years.

What has been your biggest disappointment?

Clearly the oil companies have been disappointing, particularly with the recent government policy change.

But companies such as Hindustan Petroleum, one of our biggest holdings, have beaten analysts’ estimates 13 quarters in a row. We think the company has good growth drivers going forward.

Before elections, the market has historically had a wobble and, in the past, it’s been a good time for stock pickers.

Only time will tell whether we are at that point again.

Do you invest in the fund?

Yes. I’m not allowed to say how much, but it’s a significant amount.

What did you dream of doing as a child?

When I was a kid I wanted to be a doctor. That ended when I was about 14 or 15.