Drugs giant AstraZeneca to axe 7,300 global jobs

Pharmaceuticals giant Astra-Zeneca said yesterday it would axe 7,300 jobs as the company shrinks in the face of declining revenues.

The UK’s second-biggest drugs maker, which has 61,000 staff globally, stressed it was too early to say how many of its 8,000 staff in the UK would be affected. It ended its presence in Scotland last year when it closed an office in Edinburgh.

AstraZeneca has already cut 21,600 staff globally since 2007 as part of two previous cost reduction initiatives. The latest jobs blow came as the Cheshire-based company announced a 2 per cent fall in revenues to $33.3 billion (£21.1bn) in 2011, while profits slipped 4 per cent to $13.2bn.

The firm warned that revenues for 2012 are likely to be down by more than 10 per cent because patents are running out on some of its biggest selling drugs. Like other pharma firms, it is also facing pressures from cost-conscious governments to reduce its prices.

Chief executive David Brennan said the company was taking steps to drive productivity and improve returns on its “investment in innovation”.

“While the further expected losses of market exclusivity make for a challenging 2012 outlook, we remain committed to a long-term, focused, R&D based strategy,” he added.

But the Anglo-Swedish company has suffered a number of setbacks in its efforts to secure approval for new blockbuster drugs.