Merck Pre-Tax Up 60 Per Cent

Merck KGaA, the German parent company of drugs group Merck, said on Wednesday that its pretax profits rose 60 per cent to DM460 million ($254.1 million) in 1997, up from DM288 million last time. Merck KGaA said that sales rose 3.3 percent to DM1.899 billion, but said that the low rise in sales, coupled with a high research and development spend, meant that operating earnings fell by 10 per cent in calendar 1997. The high level of pretax earnings was mainly attributable to improved earnings from its subsidiaries and the sale of its dermatology business the group said in a statement. Reuters

 

Overall, the global operations of the Merck group saw turnover of eight billion marks. The group said it would release figures on April 7.