LONDON, Jan 29 (APM) - Daiichi Sankyo said on Friday its fortunes improved sharply in its third quarter to the end of December, thanks to recovering earnings at its Indian generics division Ranbaxy Laboratories.

Japan's number three drug maker said in a statement that it posted a net profit of 20.6 billion yen (163 million euros) in the three month period.

In the corresponding quarter a year earlier, the company booked a net loss of 331.8 billion yen (262 million euros) due to a 354 billion yen write-off on its Ranbaxy shares.

It raised its full-year profit forecast by 13% because of an anticipated foreign exchange-related gain instead of a loss at Ranbaxy.

It added that net income could amount to 45 billion yen in the year ending March, compared with the 40 billion yen that Daiichi forecast in October.

Profit was 39.2 billion yen in the first nine months, compared with a loss of 298 billion yen a year earlier.

Daiichi has major hopes for oral antiplatelet Efient (prasugrel), which the Japanese company and Eli Lilly jointly launched in the U.S. and in the U.K. earlier in the financial year.

nh/ra


[17934] 29/01/2010 09:44 GMT - INDUSTRY