ZURICH: Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis on Tuesday reported a sharp drop in net profits in the third quarter, weighed down by the cost of restructuring.

Novartis in a statement reported a 43 percent fall in third-quarter net profits to nearly $1.6 billion.

Turnover fell by four percent to $12.5 billion on the strength of the US dollar but rose by four percent in local currency, it said.

The company in April announced a major reorganisation, notably by merging its pharmaceutical and oncology divisions and separating its generic medicine branch, Sandoz.

That division faced fierce price competition in the third quarter, particularly in the United States, but its turnover climbed by four percent in local currency.

Its pharmaceutical division’s sales also rose by four percent thanks to its flagship products such as Cosentyx, Entresto and Pluvicto, a new prostate cancer treatment approved in the United States and the European Union this year.

Novartis said it expected its pharmaceutical division to grow by around five percent in 2022 and upped its sales forecast for Sandoz.

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The group said in June that it was slashing around 8,000 jobs worldwide as part of the restructuring push.

But it expects the restructuring to leave it with $1 billion more in its coffers by 2024, from selling off divisions, cutting administrative expenses and overall cost-savings.