Embattled Covid-19 jab maker Astrazeneca reports $275m of vaccine sales
Embattled Covid-19 vaccine maker Astrazeneca reported a jump in revenue to $7.32bn in the first quarter, including $275m of coronavirus jab sales.
The pharmaceutical giant said revenue grew 15 per cent in the first three months of 2021, and profit after tax jumped from £750m to £1.56bn.
It recorded $275m of Covid-19 jab sales after delivering around 68m doses worldwide as the vaccine rollout accelerated, up from just $2m in the fourth quarter of last year.
It’s the first time the FTSE-listed pharma company has specified the value of its Covid-19 jab, which has been subject to pauses and outright bans in some countries after it was linked to very rare blood clots in younger people.
Unlike rivals, the company is not making a profit on the Covid-19 vaccine during the global pandemic.
Vaccine sales in Europe were $224m, $43m in emerging markets and $8m in the rest of the world.
“We expect the impact of Covidd to reduce and anticipate a performance acceleration in the second half of 2021,” CEO Pascal Soriot said this morning.