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news.Upon announcing a sharp increase in earnings in 2005 driven by strong sales of Betaseron, German drugmaker Schering AG has indicated its intention to secure full control over the blockbuster multiple sclerosis treatment.
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Schering said that it would exercise an option to buy the US rights to its best-selling Betaseron drug from Chiron. Although Schering currently has a supply agreement with the US biotech firm, the acquisition of Chiron by Novartis offers the German group the opportunity to buy back these rights and the manufacturing facilities associated with the drug.
However, Schering chief executive Hubertus Erlen said that negotiations with Novartis over the drug rights were likely to go on for some time.
In its financial year update, Schering also reported that fourth-quarter profit rose 17% from a year earlier, to $166 million. The increase in sales was driven by the performance of Betaseron, which saw sales up 10%, and the 34% rise in revenues of its oral contraceptive, Yasmin.
Concurrent with these results, Mr Erlen revealed that the company would initiate the largest share buyback program in its history, purchasing up to E500 million worth of its own shares on the stock market between March 1, 2006 and September 30, 2006.