Swine flu vaccine gives boost to GSK

Soaring global demand for swine flu vaccinations is expected to give drug giant GlaxoSmithKline a £1bn (€1.1bn) sales boost in the final three months of the year, the group confirmed today.

Glaxo said it had shipped 25 million doses of its swine flu vaccine so far and was “in good shape” to meet orders for 440 million worldwide.

The firm added it had already taken further Government orders since it last updated the stock market and has also pledged to donate 50 million doses to the World Health Organisation to help in the fight against the flu pandemic.

Glaxo reported a 3% rise in third-quarter sales today to £6.76bn (€7.48bn), but the results do not yet include figures for its Pandemrix vaccination for the H1N1 virus.

It confirmed in July the vaccination would cost developed countries around €7 for each dose, but has declined to reveal production costs amid speculation that a Pandemrix dose costs as little as €1.10 to make.

The group received approval for the vaccine in Europe last month and has been “ramping up” production over the past three weeks to meet surging demand.

It has yet to receive approval in the US, but said it was a minor player in the American vaccination programme, with orders expected of around 7.5 million doses.

Around half a million people will have received its vaccine this week as part of European government vaccination programmes to immunise high-risk groups first, according to the group.

Fears are growing of a winter surge in the pandemic.

Glaxo said it was concentrating on speeding up manufacturing capabilities to meet its contractual commitments.

It makes Pandemrix in Dresden and Quebec, but the demand is so great – more than 50% more than for normal seasonal flu – that the firm is also outsourcing production to third-party manufacturers.

Glaxo also produces the Relenza flu treatment and is hoping to produce around 190 million doses by the end of the year.

Its third-quarter results reveal that sales of Relenza more than doubled to £464m (€514m) in the first nine months of the year.

Demand for the swine flu treatment helped Glaxo return to sales growth for the first time in two years and it said it expected further growth in the fourth quarter thanks to “significant” flu drug sales.