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The purpose of this paper is to clarify the forms of enterprises in the pharmaceutical industry in Nara Prefecture. The pharmaceutical industry in Nara Prefecture originated from the production or placement medicine/' which was established as a local industry Placement medicines are sold under a system in which distributors place medicines in households and customers pay for the used medicines later. However, the production of placement medicines has decreased, and only a few enterprises specialize in their production. On the other hand, some enterprises have diversified into products such as over-the-counter drugs, quasi-drugs, and health foods. In addition, enterprises mainly engaged in contract production for major pharmaceutical companies or drugstores have also emerged. These enterprises are large in the pharmaceutical industry in Nara Prefecture and are characterized by the fact that their main products are prescription drugs. As described above, changes in the forms of pharmaceutical production enterprises in Nara Prefecture have been observed. In Nara Prefecture, although the share of placement medicines in total production has been declining, the production value of pharmaceutical products has shown an increasing trend since the mid-2000s, reflecting the diversification of products and the increase in contract production. However, the decline in the production of placement medicines has reduced the advantages of enterprises concentrated in Nara Prefecture. The expansion of contract production contributes to the increase in production value, but 辻 is susceptible to the globalization of production or institutional changes in the pharmaceutical industry. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]