The global COVID-19 diagnostics market is
expected to reach revenues of over USD 13 billion in 2020 and is projected to
grow at a CAGR of around (9)% during the period 2020-2026, driven by the
surging demand for rapid testing across the globe. However, once COVID-19
vaccines are released in the market, the novel coronavirus will no longer be
given pandemic status and COVID-19 will become like any other normal infectious
disease, thus reducing the demand for test kits in the market.
These are the latest findings of Arizton Advisory
and Intelligence (Chicago, IL, USA), a provider of market intelligence reports
and advisory and consulting services.
Countries across the globe are conducting mass
testing for COVID-19 to diagnose and isolate affected patients, helping to
contain the spread of the coronavirus. As the number of people with the disease
increases and other existing diagnostic techniques such as polymerase chain
reaction (PCR) take longer, the demand for rapid testing is surging. People
feel that they can be severely affected by the disease by the time they provide
a sample for the test and receive the results. Rapid testing can provide
results within 24 hours or less. As the number of samples increases, labs are
using more rapid testing to increase the number of tests performed. Rapid tests
are also being used as a priority in hospitals as the waiting period for the
test results has increased to more than a week in some places.
Based on product, the need to perform rapid testing
for the detection of coronavirus is driving the demand for consumables,
including biomarkers and reagents, including substrates, enzymes, electrolytes,
specific proteins, lipids, and point-of-care test kits, as they obtain quick
and accurate results for diagnosing diseases, including COVID-19. On the basis
of type of test, the reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR)
segment holds a share of over 75% of the global COVID diagnostics market as
RT-PCR testing is considered exceptionally reliable. The COVID-19 diagnostics
market is witnessing increasing uptake of PCR testing for reliable and quick
diagnosis. The WHO has recommended it as a gold standard test for COVID-19
diagnosis, leading to higher usage of PCR testing among countries across the
world. The demand for PCR-based tests has increased by 300 times, as compared
to the pre-COVID-19 situation.
Based on technology, the molecular segment holds
the largest share of the global COVID-19 diagnostics market, as most of the
immunoassays had demonstrated limited sensitivity and specificity during the
initial days of the pandemic. Immunoassay tests had also produced several false
positive and false negative results, forcing healthcare providers to look for
alternative testing methods. This has resulted in greater preference for the
use of molecular techniques such as PCR for accurate diagnosis. However,
vendors have now come up with high sensitivity and specificity immunoassay
tests that deliver superior results. By end-user, the diagnostic laboratories
segment dominates the global COVID-19 diagnostics market with the highest
share, as the majority of public and private labs are focusing on the diagnosis
of COVID-19 samples during the pandemic.
Geographically, APAC accounted for the largest
share of the global COVID-19 diagnostics market at around 42% in 2019. This was
primarily due to the larger population and large numbers of tests conducted by
countries such as China, India, and Singapore in the region. China, Japan,
India, South Korea, and Australia are the major revenue contributors to the
APAC COVID-19 diagnostics market. APAC is expected to remain the largest market
for COVID-19 diagnostics during the forecast period as its higher population
will increase the target pool of people requiring diagnosis and improvement in
the region’s healthcare infrastructure. In addition, the rising purchasing
power for healthcare services and growing focus on early diagnosis and
prevention programs such as mass testing in the region are encouraging more people
to get diagnosed for COVID-19.
