Latest news with #pharmaceutical
Reuters
an hour ago
- Business
- Reuters
GSK in talks with Trump administration on U.S. drug pricing, CEO says
LONDON, July 30 (Reuters) - British drugmaker GSK (GSK.L), opens new tab said on Wednesday it is in talks with the Trump administration about ways to lower U.S. drug costs, becoming the latest pharmaceutical company to acknowledge action under pressure from Washington to rein in prices. GSK CEO Emma Walmsley said on a call with journalists after the company posted second-quarter profits above analyst expectations that the discussions with the U.S. administration are "about how to make sure discounts are passed on to patients and pricing is sustainable, both for the government and also for industry."
Reuters
an hour ago
- Business
- Reuters
Novo Nordisk shares fall further as new CEO faces US challenges
COPENHAGEN, DENMARK, July 30 (Reuters) - Shares in Wegovy maker Novo Nordisk continued to slide on Wednesday as analysts warned of persistent competition from copycat drugs in the U.S., a day after a profit warning and the naming of a new CEO prompted investors to wipe $70 billion off the drugmaker's value. Novo Nordisk on Tuesday slashed its outlook for 2025 sales growth and said it had appointed veteran insider Maziar Mike Doustdar as its new CEO. Novo, which became Europe's most valuable listed company following the launch of Wegovy in 2021, was worth as much as $615 billion at its peak in June last year. But its shares have fallen by two-thirds on concerns the drugmaker is losing ground in the obesity drug race. Shares closed down 23% on Tuesday after trading as much as 30% lower. On Wednesday, they had fallen a further 3.1% by 0846 GMT. Novo said the lower sales outlook reflected competition from "compounded" copycats to Wegovy - custom-made medicines that are based on the same ingredients as branded drugs - which took investors by surprise. The company's management failed to reassure investors on a call with investors and analysts on Tuesday, when incoming CEO Doustdar stated that "we are having a fantastic growth right now with Wegovy". "This has really become a severe credibility issue," said Barclays analyst Emily Field. "They don't view the issues that they have as severely as the market does, and that's creating a big problem." Barclays downgraded the stock to "equal-weight" from "overweight". Novo on Tuesday said it was intensifying its efforts to regain patients taking compounded versions, and had stepped up dialogue with the U.S. FDA to limit unlawful compounding. JPMorgan kept its "overweight" recommendation on the stock but cut its target price to 500 crowns from 650 crowns. Its analysts said in a research note that they expect the company to return to growth in U.S. scripts in the near term, but "would not be surprised to see investors remaining cautious pending evidence of execution against the new targets".
Yahoo
an hour ago
- Business
- Yahoo
Novo Nordisk stock crashes after company cuts sales, profit outlook on weight-loss drug competition
Novo Nordisk (NVO) stock plunged on Tuesday, down over 21% at the closing bell after the company behind the viral weight-loss drug Wegovy and diabetes treatment Ozempic slashed its sales and profit forecasts. In a release early Tuesday, the pharmaceutical giant cut its expected full-year sales growth to 8%-14%, down from the 13%-21% it expected to see as of May. The company also said it now expects operating profit growth of 10%-16%, down from its previous estimate of 16%-24%. Read more about Novo Nordisk's stock moves and today's market action. Novo Nordisk attributed the estimate cuts to weaker-than-expected second-half sales forecasts for both Wegovy and Ozempic as the company has had to fend off competition from rivals and copycat "compounder" drugs. "For Wegovy in the US, the sales outlook reflects the persistent use of compounded GLP-1s, slower-than-expected market expansion and competition," the company said in its statement. "For Ozempic, the updated outlook is negatively impacted by competition in the US." Rival drugmaker Eli Lilly and Company (LLY), which also makes weight-loss drugs like the Danish maker's Wegovy, was down more than 5% at the closing bell, while competitor Hims & Hers Health (HIMS) ended the day up more than 2.5%. Novo Nordisk's estimate cuts mark the second time this year that the company has lowered performance expectations, after cutting its 2025 full-year guidance in May following weaker-than-expected Q1 sales figures. The drugmaker's share price is down more than 55% over the past year as the company has faced increasing competition from the likes of Hims and Eli Lilly. US prescriptions for Eli Lilly's weight-loss drug Zepbound passed those issued for Novo Nordisk's Wegovy in March, according to Reuters. Eli Lilly also announced in May that its weight-loss drug was more effective across several markers in a head-to-head trial between the two. In a press release released concurrently Tuesday morning with the lowered estimates announcement, Novo Nordisk said that Mike Doustdar, the company's executive vice president of international operations, will be the drugmaker's new president and CEO as of Aug. 7. Doustdar replaces Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen, whose outster was announced in May after the company's stock price spent a year plunging downward. Jake Conley is a breaking news reporter covering US equities for Yahoo Finance. Follow him on X at @byjakeconley or email him at Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
AsiaOne
9 hours ago
- Business
- AsiaOne
No clarity yet on baseline or pharmaceutical tariffs with US: DPM Gan, Singapore News
SINGAPORE – The US government did not negotiate its tariffs on Singapore and did not want to commit on whether the 10 per cent baseline tax could rise or fall in the future, said Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong. DPM Gan, who visited the US from July 20 to 26, added that he did not get to further discussions on pharmaceutical tariffs being contemplated by the Trump administration. He told the SG60 IPS-SBF Conference on July 29 that these talks did not take place as he did not get the chance to meet Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick. He did, however, meet other officials, including Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent and Trade Representative Jamieson Greer. They discussed ways to keep up the long and mutually beneficial bilateral economic relationship, as well as potential collaboration in areas like the digital economy. DPM Gan also met business leaders in New York, and congressional leaders handling trade issues in Washington. He also visited an ST Engineering aerostructures factory in Maryland. The US administration was 'not in the mood to discuss any discount to the baseline tariff', DPM Gan said at a dialogue moderated by David Rennie, The Economist's geopolitics editor. 'We also wanted to know whether the baseline tariff will stay at 10 per cent or will it be higher or lower? The answer was non-committal. They are still reviewing the tariff and, in time to come, they will make the appropriate announcement. So we just have to wait and see.' DPM Gan, who is also Minister for Trade and Industry, said he has told US officials that Singapore would be keen to negotiate its baseline tariff rate if the opportunity arises. Pharmaceuticals and semiconductors, which are key exports from Singapore to the US, are currently exempt from baseline tariffs. But US President Donald Trump had earlier in 2025 threatened to end an exemption for pharmaceutical imports, saying tariffs would be imposed 'at a level that you haven't really seen before'. The US is a major market for Singapore-based drugmakers including American multinationals like Pfizer and Johnson & Johnson. DPM Gan said official-level discussions between Singapore and the US Department of Commerce, which commenced before his trip, are still ongoing. 'I can't go into detail because negotiation is ongoing and there's a bit of a confidentiality we need to maintain on both sides,' he said when asked what the US was looking to secure through these talks. He added that the US generally had concerns about what the country experienced during the Covid-19 pandemic, when supplies of critical pharmaceuticals were disrupted. 'They want to make sure that they have a secure supply line of pharmaceuticals. They do want to see whether they can onshore this production, so that they can produce (it) themselves. But they also know that it's not possible to onshore everything, because some of the raw materials are actually (from) outside of America,' he said. 'They do need to think about how they can work with partners, trusted partners, to make sure that their supply chain is secure and reliable. So that is what they are looking for in their partners, including Singapore,' he added. 'I think the administration's focus now is to finish the negotiation of reciprocal tariffs. Then it will start to engage countries on specific sectoral tariffs in pharmaceuticals and semiconductors.' DPM Gan said Singapore has yet to engage the US on the prospect of semiconductor tariffs. However, he added that discussions to preserve the country's access to artificial intelligence equipment and semiconductors are under way. Speaking at the same conference earlier in the day, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said Singapore's trade and investment relationship with America, even with the tariffs, remains important. 'We would prefer to have zero tariffs of course, but if it is the baseline rate, then we are at the lowest category. We can live with it, and we can still do business and there will still be many opportunities for trade with the US, because whatever is happening in America now, the economy is still resilient, and there is still tremendous innovation happening in American companies, and so there will still be opportunities there,' he said. DPM Gan in his dialogue said the US economy continues to be relatively resilient. He said that based on the feedback from US businessmen he met on his trip, the outlook for the US economy seems cautiously optimistic, adding that Mr Trump's One Big Beautiful Bill, which includes tax cuts and business support measures, may have contributed to this. He said Singapore continues to have a good working relationship with the US. The US was Singapore's second-largest trading partner in 2024, while Singapore was its 16th-largest trading partner. Singapore was also the third-largest Asian investor in the US. More than 250 Singapore companies operate across 45 states, supporting around 350,000 jobs in the US, according to the Republic's Ministry of Trade and Industry. The US also has a longstanding trade surplus and free trade agreement with Singapore. [[nid:720678]] The recent deals between the US and several countries, as well as the European Union economic bloc, are good news, DPM Gan said. 'This gives us a sense that there's good progress in the tariff negotiation. But I also come back with the sense that there remains significant uncertainty. I'm not sure whether the uncertainty has really been eliminated or even reduced,' he added. He cited the lack of clarity on the rules of origin that will be used to determine where products originate from. He also said it is unclear how reciprocal tariffs will be implemented, and how components from different countries and transshipped goods will be assessed. This comes on top of the uncertainty around sectoral tariffs, which are yet to be determined. There is also uncertainty about whether the investments that countries have pledged to the US under tariff deals are new contributions, or money that is currently invested in another country, DPM Gan said. 'For example, the EU has committed to make an investment... over a period of time. Japan has also committed investments into the US. Japan has been a major investor in Singapore. Whether the Japanese investment in Singapore will be diverted to the US is a question that is yet to be seen,' he said. 'There are (also) uncertainties as to how countries will respond to the outcome of the tariff negotiation. Some countries have also committed to purchase more from the US, and they would have been purchasing these products from other countries. Whether now, instead of purchasing from country A, country B, they will now purchase from the US, and therefore exports from these countries to affected countries will be changed,' he added. 'I think these uncertainties (are) second derivative uncertainties. No one is paying much attention yet, because we need to have a tariff settled, then we work out how the secondary impact would be.' Global supply chains will also be restructured if countries move their investments from destinations facing higher US tariffs to those facing lower tariffs, he said. 'The overall global trading system, what we call the rules-based multilateral trading system, that we depend on rules, respecting trade agreements with one another, and not change at will, is something that has been challenged,' DPM Gan said. 'Today, we can agree with one another on a certain tariff, but tomorrow, something happens. We start to change our tariff rate, and that is something that is very uncertain, and that has been seen over the last few months.' [[nid:720154]] This article was first published in The Straits Times . Permission required for reproduction.
Straits Times
13 hours ago
- Business
- Straits Times
Acting NASA administrator to hold talks with Russian counterpart on space issues
Sign up now: Get ST's newsletters delivered to your inbox FILE PHOTO: U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy speaks to the media outside the White House in Washington, D.C., U.S., May 6, 2025. REUTERS/Kent Nishimura/File Photo WASHINGTON - The interim head of NASA, U.S. Transportation Secretary Sean Duffy, said on Tuesday he is looking to find common ground with Russia on space issues when he meets with his Russian counterpart later this week. Russian news agencies reported earlier this week that Duffy is set to hold talks with the head of Russian space agency Roscosmos, Dmitry Bakanov, for the first in-person meeting at the agencies' heads' level since 2018. "We have wild disagreement with the Russians on Ukraine," Duffy told reporters after an event on Capitol Hill, while noting that the United States has a partnership with Russia on the International Space Station. "We're going to continue to build alliances and partnerships and friendships as humanity continues to advance in space exploration." President Donald Trump named Duffy as NASA's interim head earlier this month. Duffy has emphasized that this is a temporary assignment. "We find points of agreement, points of partnership, which is what we have with the International Space Station and the Russians," Duffy said. "Through hard times, we don't throw those relationships away." Duffy is headed to Cape Canaveral, Florida on Wednesday for meetings and to attend the scheduled launch of the SpaceX Crew-11 flight this week. The space program is one of the few international projects on which the United States and Russia still cooperate closely. Relations in other areas between the two countries have broken down since Russia's invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Top stories Swipe. Select. Stay informed. Business No clarity yet on baseline or pharmaceutical tariffs with US: DPM Gan Singapore Grace Fu apologises for Tanjong Katong sinkhole, says road may stay closed for a few more days Singapore Terrorism threat in Singapore remains high, driven by events like Israeli-Palestinian conflict: ISD Singapore Liquidators score victory to recoup over $900 million from alleged scammer Ng Yu Zhi's associates Singapore Man on trial for raping woman who hired him to repair lights in her flat Sport IOC president Kirsty Coventry a 'huge supporter' of Singapore Singapore Child and firefighter among 7 taken to hospital after fire breaks out in Toa Payoh flat Singapore S'pore can and must meaningfully apply tech like AI in a way that creates jobs for locals: PM Wong "We plan to discuss the continuation of the cross-flight program, the extension of the International Space Station's operational life, and the work of the Russia-U.S. joint task force on the future safe deorbiting and controlled ocean disposal of the ISS," TASS cited Bakanov as saying in the Roscosmos statement. The last meeting between the heads of Roscosmos and NASA took place in October 2018, when Dmitry Rogozin, then director general of Roscosmos, met NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine in person also at the Baikonur Cosmodrome. REUTERS
