Health
Swiss drug maker Roche posts 7 per cent profit drop amid strong franc, diagnostic charges
Roche Holding Ltd. logo. From wkrb13.com.
GENEVA—Swiss drugmaker Roche Holding AG has posted a net profit drop of 7 per cent compared with a year ago, weighed down by a strong Swiss franc and charges from one of its diagnostic units.
The world’s biggest manufacturer of cancer drugs, which reports earnings every six months, posted 5.
641 billion Swiss francs ($6.25 billion) in net income from April to June, down from 6.047 billion francs in the comparable period of 2013.
The Basel, Switzerland-based company on Thursday reported first-half sales were 22.
974 billion francs, down 1 per cent from 23.295 billion francs from a year ago.
It reported impairment charges of 414 million francs in tissue diagnostics and said the stronger Swiss franc in the first half of the year, particularly against the dollar, was “strongly negative on the results.
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