Novo Nordisk reports profit rise, progress on US drug permit

The world's top insulin maker, Novo Nordisk, reported rising quarterly profits on Thursday and said studies required to release long-acting insulin Tresiba in the US would be completed sooner than previously thought. Net profit in the second quarter rose by four per cent to 6.99 billion kroner (938 million euros, $1.25 billion) as revenue grew one per cent to 21.63 billion kroner. Stated in local currencies, revenue was 7.0-per cent higher than a year ago, driven by sales of Victoza, which controls blood sugar levels by mimicking an intestinal hormone called GLP-1, and modern insulin like the long-acting Levemir. The US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) said in February last year that approval for the group's once-daily insulin Tresiba could not be granted until the company provided more cardiovascular data. ‘Novo Nordisk now expects to have data to support the pre-specified interim analysis of major adverse cardiovascular events around the turn of the year. Previously, this was expected mid-2015,’ the company said. Last year, Novo Nordisk lost two contracts with US health benefit manager Express Scripts, which negotiates drug prices for millions of insured Americans, according to AFP.