Roche Warns Of Bigger Negative Impact From COVID-19 And Biosimilars

 
• By Jessica Merrill
  
Generate a summary of this article
Listen to this article
Beta

Biosimilar competitors to Avastin, Herceptin and Rituxan and headwinds from COVID-19 are expected to have a CHF4.7bn negative impact in 2020, higher than the CHF4bn previously projected.

Dog in headwind at the stony beach
Roche faced headwinds from COVID-19 and biosimilars in H1 • Source: Shutterstock

It was a tough first half for Roche Holding AG, with the company's specialized pharmaceutical portfolio facing headwinds from the COVID-19 pandemic just as three of its top-selling drugs – Avastin (bevacizumab), Rituxan (rituximab) and Herceptin (trastuzumab) – were already facing steep biosimilar competition. Roche's first-half pharmaceutical sales fell 4% year-over-year to CHF23.2bn ($25.06bn), but rose by 1% at constant exchange rates, as management warned that the combined impact of its challenges in 2020 may be higher than expected.

The negative impact from biosimilars and COVID-19 in the US, Europe and Japan is now expected to be CHF4.7bn ($5.08bn)...

Scrip Podcast

Keep up with the top pharma business news of the week. On the go.

Scrip brings you a weekly bulletin of top picks.

SpotifyApple PodcastsWebsite

More from Earnings

Scrip-Business (Free-1): Top-Selling Drugs 2024: Keytruda, Ozempic And Dupixent Dominate

 
• By Nabil

Merck’s immuno-oncology blockbuster was the world’s best-selling drugs by revenues for the second year in a row, with an almost $12bn lead over its closest rival, Novo Nordisk’s GLP-1 drug Ozempic.

Nancy Tests SPARC-1036

Nancy tests Jira ticket SPARC-1036: Make anchor link work on initial page load

Cagrisema Leads The Charge For 2025

 
• By Elizabeth Cairns

2030 sales forecasts for Novo’s obesity hope are an order of magnitude larger than its closest rival among 2025’s expected debutantes.  

Small But Mitey: Tarsus To Amp Up Strong Xdemvy Launch

 
• By Alexandra Shimmings

Tarsus Pharmaceuticals is putting more sales and marketing heft behind its novel eyelid disease therapy, Xdemvy, to capitalize on a solid start in a previously untapped market.    

More from Business

How A New Healthcare Dialogue Is Driving Market Access In Mexico

Companies stand a better chance of securing public reimbursement in Mexico for innovative medicines if they understand changing approaches to healthcare. The shift means the emergence of managed entry agreements and a focus on economic impact, explains AMIIF, Mexico's research-based pharmaceutical industry association.

How Novartis Is Elevating CVD Outcomes, Driving ‘Personalized Access’ In APMA

Novartis’s APMA chief outlines the company’s tailored approach to deliver long-term outcomes, novel access solutions via innovative financing options and shape the CVD disease ecosystem in the extraordinarily diverse region. Partnering to build AI infrastructure is another key prong.

India Rare Diseases: Court Shows Path For Policy Action, Funding, Price Issues-- Test-2

A court order encompassing funding, drug pricing, clinical trials and overall policy implementation aspects is expected to bring about a paradigm shift in the treatment of rare diseases in India. Sarepta, Roche and Sanofi are among the key players that have been part of pricing discussions.