Shares in Hungarian drug firms rise on court hopes

The court is due to discuss the issue at its two-day meeting starting on Monday, it said in a statement on its Web site.

By 1308 GMT shares in Richter were trading at 20,510 forints, up 955 forints or 4.88 percent, while Egis was up by 245 forints or three percent at 8,245 forints.

"The market expects that the Constitutional Court will reject the government's move," said Peter Tordai, analyst at K&H Equities.

"The Constitutional Court will review whether the decision conflicts with the written words and the spirit of the Constitution, and with other legal rules," he said.

The government cut the prices of subsidised drugs by 15 percent from April for up to 180 days in a bid to avoid a 40 billion forints ($190 million) overshoot of the drug subsidy budget this year and to prevent a rise in the overall budget deficit.

Earlier this month the government also backed a draft proposal to extend the current freeze.

The Parliament's Economic Committee accepted a draft bill early in May to allow the government to freeze both subsidised and, additionally, non-subsidised drug prices for up to a year after the current freeze expires.

The government measures sparked an industry outcry and drugs companies appealed to the Constitutional Court.

The Health Ministry was not immediately available for comment.



Source: Reuters