New Delhi, March 18 (IANS): A prolonged Russia-Ukraine crisis will affect Indian pharma companies based in Ukraine, the Federation of Indian Chambers of Commerce and Industry (Ficci) said Tuesday

"If the situation continues, then it could have a bearing on the country’s (Ukraine) exchange rate that would make the landed cost of Indian pharmaceuticals higher," Ficci said here after it surveyed representatives of leading Indian pharmaceutical companies based in Ukraine.

While recent developments in Ukraine have had no immediate impact on the businesses of Indian pharmaceutical companies, there have been reasons for concern mainly due to a recent devaluation of the Ukrainian currency - Hryvnia - against the US dollar, Ficci said.

An exchange rate of 8.20 Hryvnia to the US dollar in mid-December had dropped to 9.86 Hryvnia by the beginning of March, signalling a devaluation of 20 percent.

Ukraine is India’s second largest trading partner in the Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS) after Russia. Exports of pharmaceuticals from India in 2012-13 were worth $154 million, which is about 30 percent of India's total exports to Ukraine.

In 2012-13, India’s total trade with Ukraine was $3.18 billion.

Among Indian companies, Dr Reddy’s is a significant exporter to the region, with about 20 percent of the company's revenues during fiscal 2013 coming from Russia and the CIS.