AstraZeneca Revenue From COVID-19 Vaccine Sales Amounts To $1.2Bln In First Half Of Year

MOSCOW (UrduPoint News / Sputnik - 29th July, 2021) The Anglo-Swedish drugmaker AstraZeneca increased its revenue by 23% to $15.54 billion in the first half of the year, of which $1.2 billion were obtained from the sale of their COVID-19 vaccine, the company said on Thursday in a financial report.

"Total revenue, predominantly comprised of Product Sales, amounted to $1,169 million in the half, reflecting the delivery of 319 million doses worldwide. Sales in Europe were $572 million, Emerging Markets sales were $455 million, and in Established RoW sales amounted to $109 Million," the company said.

The company's net profit in the first half amounted to $2.112 billion, which is 42% higher than the annual limitation indicator. The profit per share was $1.61 against $1.17 a year earlier, and operating income increased by 21% to $3.022 billion.

AstraZeneca, one of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world, was formed in 1999 by a merger of British Zeneca Group and Swedish Astra. The company is engaged in the development, production, and sale of drugs for the treatment of gastrointestinal, cardiovascular, neurological, as well as oncological diseases.

In February 2021, the World Health Organization listed two versions of the AstraZeneca/Oxford COVID-19 vaccine for emergency use, giving the green light for these vaccines to be rolled out globally through COVAX.

According to AstraZeneca, its vaccine shows 92% and 86% efficiency against hospitalisation in the Delta and Alpha variant cases, respectively. At the same time, a UK-based study from May, published in the New England Journal of Medicine on July 21, showed that AstraZeneca was 33% effective after one dose, 60% effective after two.

Earlier this year, concerns emerged over side-effects of the AstraZeneca vaccine due to very rare cases of blood-clotting after vaccination. After some nations temporarliy suspended use of the vaccine, the WHO said it considers the benefits of the drug to outweigh its risks.