Boehringer Ingelheim reported Tuesday at its annual press conference that net income for 2010 plunged 50 percent to 888 million euros ($1.3 billion) as expected generic competition negatively affected sales.

 

The company noted that it lost revenue of around 1.4 billion euros ($2 billion) due to product exclusivity ending on "important sales drivers in the US pharmaceuticals market, and the additional burden arising from healthcare reforms," both in the country and in Europe.

 

Company chairman Andreas Barner called the 12-month period "a year of transition," adding that "due to patent expiries and the associated competition from generics, launch preparations for new products and regulatory changes in the markets, we had already anticipated…that we could not achieve the high growth rates of the previous years." Overall sales in 2010 slipped 1 percent to 12.6 billion euros ($17.9 billion).

 

The drugmaker said that its pharmaceutical business generated revenue of 11.7 billion euros ($16.6 billion) last year, while sales in the US fell 8.5 percent to 5.7 billion euros ($8.1 billion), which the company explained was mainly "due to the special situation with patent expiries." Sales of Spiriva increased 19.1 percent to 2.9 billion euros ($4.1 billion) in 2010 compared to the prior year, while Micardis saw revenue growth of 11.6 percent to 1.6 billion euros ($2.3 billion). The company noted that annual sales of Combivent grew 11.2 percent to 727 million euros ($1 billion).

 

Looking ahead, Boehringer Ingelheim said it expects mid-single digit percent growth this year, which will accelerate in 2012. The company indicated that growth will be driven by its oral thrombin inhibitor Pradaxa, which was approved in the US and Canada last year and is expected to garner further approvals in Europe

 

. The drugmaker noted that markets in developing countries and in the Asia-Pacific region "have great strategic importance" for the company, although a forecast "is at present not possible because of the current events in Japan."
 

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