AstraZeneca quarterly net profit jumps on record US growth

[LONDON] British pharmaceutical giant AstraZeneca on Tuesday (Jul 29) said net profit rose 27 per cent in the second quarter, boosted by record growth in its key US market.

Profit after tax rose to US$2.45 billion in the three months to the end of June, the company said in an earnings statement, following its recently announced multi-billion-dollar investment in the United States.

Total revenue climbed 12 per cent to a quarterly record of US$14.5 billion, driven by strong cancer drug sales.

Amid the threat of President Donald Trump’s possible tariffs on pharmaceutical imports, AstraZeneca has unveiled plans to invest US$50 billion in the US by 2030 and has already began moving some of its European production to the US.

Chief executive Pascal Soriot said the “landmark investment reflects not only America’s importance but also our confidence in our innovative medicines.”

The United States, a critical market for the pharmaceutical industry, accounted for 44 per cent of AstraZeneca’s total revenue in the second quarter, with US revenue jumping a record 13 per cent.

The company expects half of its revenue to come from the US by 2030.

Trump has ordered an investigation into potential tariffs on pharmaceutical imports, which had so far benefited from exemptions to his sweeping levies on imports from trading partners.

He suggested that levies on the sector could reach up to 200 per cent.

Washington and Brussels announced a trade agreement on Sunday that places 15 per cent tariffs on pharmaceutical imports from the European Union to the US.

Other major pharmaceutical companies – including Swiss giants Roche and Novartis, and France’s Sanofi – have also begun shifting investment and production to the United States in recent months. AFP