Lipitor, the cholesterol-cutter which is said to be the biggest-selling pharmaceutical product in the world, helped boost first quarter sales at Pfizer to $8.418 billion (€9.4bn), an increase of 11 per cent on the previous year.
Net profits for the three months were ahead 22 per cent at $2.356 billion, or by 14 per cent to $2.433 billion excluding exceptional items.
Lipitor sales grew by 26 per cent (or 28 per cent excluding the impact of foreign exchange) during the quarter, with strong performances from almost every market worldwide. Its growth also outpaced that of the market for statin drugs as a whole, rising 29 per cent compared to 21 per cent.
Japan was a particularly good market for Lipitor, which became the second-largest-selling statin there during the period. Lipitor's audited sales growth in Japan of 205 per cent far surpassed market growth of just 4 per cent, the company said.
"Our first quarter continued the momentum that distinguished Pfizer in 2001," said David Shedlarz, executive vice president and chief financial officer of the company. "For 2002, we anticipate double-digit revenue growth at current exchange rates, margin improvements, and continuing investments in product support and in R&D, forecasted to be about $5.3 billion for the year. Merger-related synergies for the year are expected to reach $1.7 billion," he concluded.