GSK profit drops in first quarter on higher costs

British drugmaker GlaxoSmithKline on Wednesday said its net profit fell 23 percent in the first quarter as the company faced higher exceptional costs compared with a year earlier.

Profit after tax dropped to £1.08 billion ($1.35 billion) , GSK said in an earnings statement.

The fall came despite sales its drugs sales rising 10 percent to £7.4 billion.

GSK chief executive Emma Walmsley said the quarter saw further progress in final trials of new drugs.

"We have strengthened prospects for growth in all of our key therapeutic areas this quarter: infectious diseases, HIV, respiratory/immunology and oncology," she said in the statement.

Following the update, the group's share price edged up 0.1 percent in early trading on London's top-tier FTSE 100 index, as the group also upgraded its full-year outlook for sales.

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"GSK has started 2024 in rude health. Strong growth in vaccine and speciality medicines drove a double digit rise in group sales," noted Derren Nathan, head of equity research at Hargreaves Lansdown.

The first quarter saw GSK agree to buy Aiolos Bio for up to $1.4 billion, with a focus on an asthma medication still at the testing stage.

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Source: AFP