The second quarter of 2012 was a strong quarter for the Merck Group with total revenues growing 11.6% to € 2,852 million (Q2 2011: € 2,555 million). Reported revenue growth reflected 5.7% organic growth, a 5.4% benefit from changes in foreign exchange rates, and a 0.5% impact from acquisitions. Royalty, license and commission income, which is a part of total revenues, increased 27.1% to € 109 million (Q2 2011: € 86 million). Nearly all of the Group’s royalty income stems from the Merck Serono division, which receives royalties on sales of major products such as Avonex®, Enbrel® and Humira®. Adjusted for a one-time milestone payment of € 10 million received for vilazodone in Q2 2011, the Group reported an absolute increase of € 33 million in the second quarter of 2012 compared to the year-ago-quarter. Nearly half of the increase was related to positive effects of changes in foreign exchange rates, while the remaining increase related primarily to higher royalty income from Humira®.
Merck Group | Sales by quarter/half year
Sales, which are total revenues excluding royalty, license and commission income, grew by 11.1% to € 2,743 million (Q2 2011: € 2,470 million) and reflected 5.1% organic growth, a 5.4% benefit from changes in foreign exchange rates and an 0.5% increase from acquisitions. Solid performance in all four divisions contributed to the growth, led by Merck Serono, which posted organic sales growth of 6.6% in the quarter.