Two Drugmakers’ Chinese Fortunes Diverge in Third Quarter

Pharmaceutical giants GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK) and Eli Lilly and Co. have turned out different quarterly financial results partly due to diverging sales of key products on the China market.

The U.K.’s GSK reported that sales of vaccines rose 5% to 1.7 billion pounds ($2.25 billion) in the third quarter, surpassing the average sales growth of 4% of all segments.

Eli Lilly, from the United States, caught the market’s attention when it reported sales revenue from the insulin drug Humulin plummeted 23% to $97.5 million in markets outside the U.S., although global revenue increased 9%.

Cervarix was the highlight of GSK sales growth. Sales of the vaccine against human papillomavirus, which increases the risk of cervical cancer, rose 54% to 37 million pounds. The increase was “driven by the recent launch of the vaccine in China,” GSK said in a statement.

The GSK vaccine is the only one available in China. A rival product called Gardasil, developed by Merck & Co., was greenlighted in May by the China Food and Drug Administration. It is being prepared for a launch in several months.

GSK Chief Financial Officer Simon Dingemans said during an earnings call on Wednesday that the vaccine “has started well” in the market.

Eli Lilly said that the drop in Humulin revenue in its foreign markets was “primarily due to buying patterns in China.”

An Eli Lilly spokesperson explained to Caixin that the “buying patterns” referred to its agreement with Chinese drug company 3SBio Inc.

In May, Eli Lilly granted 3SBio the exclusive distribution and promotion rights for Humulin in China — starting from July. The deal has led to “higher sales in (the second quarter of) 2017 and the reverse in (the third quarter of) 2017,” the spokesperson told Caixin, without elaborating.

Contact reporter Coco Feng (renkefeng@caixin.com)