Roche records increase in profits

MULTINATIONAL drugs company Roche, which has a manufacturing base in Clarecastle, have seen an increase in profits and a rise in group sales with demand growing for cancer medicines and an increase in sales of diagnostic tests to clinical labs.
The Swiss company described their results for 2012 as “strong” with group sales rising by 4% to 45.5 billion CHF (Swiss francs). The group’s core operating profit increased to 17.2bn CHF, attributed to solid sales development and an increase in royalty income. The group’s core earnings per share rose 10% to 13.62 CHF. The net income for Roche increased to 9.773bn CHF from 9.544bn CHF.
Roche chief executive Severin Schwan said, “We met our financial targets, grew faster than the market and our strong pipeline positions us well for further growth”.
The company stated its three top selling products, MabThera/Rituxan, Herceptin and Avastin, all performed strongly in 2012.