DRUG FIRM SLOW AT YEAR'S END

U.S. AND EUROPEAN DRUG FIRMS overall didn't fare well in the fourth quarter. Sales growth was fairly good, but the increase in earnings was lackluster, at best, trailing by far the 20.5% year-to-year growth seen in the third quarter. During the last quarter of 2003, earnings from 14 major U.S. and European pharmaceutical companies increased just 4.3% over the same period ayear earlier, to $ 14.8 billion. This slight increase came on a 14.9% rise in sales to $83.1 billion. In the quarter, U.S. pharmaceutical companies outperformed their European counterparts. Nine U.S. companies surveyed by C&EN saw their combined sales grow 18.8%, when compared with the fourth quarter of 2002, to $54.4 billion. However, earnings from continuing operations for the companies, excluding unusual items, increased just 8.2% to $10.5 billion. The aggregate profit margin for the nine firms fell to 193% from 21.2%. Meanwhile, in Europe, five of seven firms—Roche and Sanofi-Synthelabo did not report not report ...