The sale of weight loss drug Mounjaro has propelled a 90 per cent increase in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ turnover of pharmaceutical titan Eli Lilly during its most recent financial year, it has been disclosed.
The US group's division reported a turnover of £889m for 2024, as revealed by newly filed accounts at Companies House, as reported by .
This new total marks a significant rise from the previous year's £468.7m.
The results also indicate that Eli Lilly's pre-tax profit soared from £32.2m to £51.7m over the same period.
Eli Lilly attributed this substantial increase in turnover to a 150 per cent surge in third-party sales of goods.
The company added that growth in research and development and regional services to other group companies also amplified its sales by five per cent.
Eli Lilly stated: "These changes were in line with local and global management expectations."
"The core commercial operations of pharmaceutical distribution and promotion for Eli Lilly and Company Limited remain strong."
Eli Lilly makes º£½ÇÊÓƵ investment pledge
These results follow Eli Lilly's announcement of a deal with the º£½ÇÊÓƵ Government in October 2024, where it committed to invest £279m into the country.
The company said this would bring the anticipated total Eli Lilly investment into the º£½ÇÊÓƵ up to £435m.
At the time, Eli Lilly's chief executive, David Ricks, stated that post-Brexit, the º£½ÇÊÓƵ had become a "relatively small market" and needed to offer a unique investment proposition to stand out to multinational corporations.
Ricks cautioned that due to its independent trading status, the º£½ÇÊÓƵ must prioritise "flexibility, agility and business responsiveness" to continue drawing substantial investment.
Speaking on the Today programme, he further commented: "I think we find that [regulation holds back] almost every developed economy.
"But I think the difference with the º£½ÇÊÓƵ is, on your own, separate from Europe, it's a relatively small market for most multinationals – and certainly Americans."
"So something needs to be quite different to make it interesting."
Earlier this year in August, City AM reported a five-fold increase in Ozempic sales following a 126 per cent price hike of the Mounjaro drug, prompted by pressure from US President Donald Trump.
Mounjaro has been the most popular weight loss injection in the º£½ÇÊÓƵ, prescribed to an estimated 90 per cent of the country's patients.
However, approximately 625,000 patients are anticipated to switch to Wegovy (Ozempic) after Eli Lilly announced an average price increase of 126 per cent per Mounjaro jab, rising up to 170 per cent for the largest doses.
Wider industry trouble
Last week, British pharmaceutical titan Astrazeneca put a halt to a proposed £200m expansion of its research site in Cambridge, dealing another setback to the º£½ÇÊÓƵ's pharmaceutical sector.
This announcement followed the company's earlier decision to scrap plans for a £450m vaccine plant in Merseyside.
In a similar vein, US pharmaceutical behemoth Merck recently abandoned its planned £1bn º£½ÇÊÓƵ expansion, opting not to occupy its research site in London King's Cross, despite construction being slated for completion in 2027.
