Bayer raises financial guidance following Q2 2016 performance

Bayer has announced its financial results for the second quarter of 2016, during which it generated a sales total of 11.83 billion euros (9.98 billion pounds).

This represented a year-on-year decline of 1.4 percent on a reported basis, but a 2.3 percent rise after adjusting for currency and portfolio effects. The firm's pharmaceuticals business was one of its strongest performers, experiencing a 5.5 percent year-on-year rise.

Its newer products Xarelto, Eylea, Xofigo, Stivarga and Adempas achieved a total combined sales figure of 1.33 billion euros, expanding by 28.8 percent on a currency-adjusted basis, while established therapies such as Aspirin Cardio and Glucobay also performed well.

For the full year 2016, the company is now anticipating sales of 46 billion to 47 billion euros, which is slightly down from its previous predictions of more than 47 billion euros, but at the same time its earnings guidance has been revised upwards.

In pharmaceuticals, it is now expecting a high-single-digit percentage sales increase, rather than a mid-single-digit rise.

Bayer chief executive officer Werner Baumann said: "We remain confident about the year as a whole and are raising the group forecast."