KUALA LUMPUR, April 5 (Bernama) -- Pharmaceutical product manufacturerHovid Bhd is targeting to set up a production or research and development(R&D) centre in India and China by next year.

Managing director David Ho said the company was also aiming to expand itsmarket share in Africa.

Hovid, he added, was bullish on its export revenue.

"We are aggressively venturing into the New Zealand and West Asia marketsand are confident of seeing some good results soon," he told reportershere Tuesday.

Hovid opened higher against its initial public offering (IPO) price ofRM1.76 in its debut on the Second Board of Bursa Malaysia, with a two senpremium to RM1.78.

"We will be putting more money in R&D to move forward in the exportmarket," Ho said.

Hovid's strength lies in its exports, which contributed more than 50percent of its revenue. Its products are exported to over 30 countriesworldwide, including the United States and Canada as well as those inAfrica, Oceania and Central America.

Ho said Hovid had successfully registered 500 products in 26 developingcountries, with another 200 products pending registration in more than 20countries.

"We have 60 more products pending registration in Malaysia," he said.

With the growth in demand for its products, Hovid plans to set up a newR&D centre in Ipoh and expand its existing R&D centre in Penang.

Hovid's head office and manufacturing plants are located in Ipoh and thecompany has representations in Singapore, the Philippines and the UnitedStates.

As one of the country's five biggest pharmaceutical companies, Hovidprides itself on the success of its research and development, Ho said.

"We are on track to achieve our forecasted profit for this year," he said.

For the financial year ending June 30, 2005, Hovid has projected anafter-tax profit of RM13.015 million.

Hovid's phytonutrient products are produced by its subsidiary CarotechBhd.

Carotech is involved in the extraction and processing of nutrients frompalm oil for the purpose of manufacturing and producing pharmaceutical,phytonutrient and oleochemical products.

Ho said that Carotech is targeted for listing on the Mesdaq market onApril 15.

-- BERNAMA