Recordati sees 1st-qtr 2006 revenue hit 161.7M euros

Italian drugmaker Recordati says that its revenue for the first quarter of 2006 hit 161.7 million euros ($202.9 million), up 9.2% on the previous comparable period. The firm said that the growth had been driven by good performance from key products, citing the antihypertensive calcium channel blocker Corifeo (lercanidipine), which saw 30% growth over 2005, as an example. On the negative side, the company said that the mandatory 2% price cut, in Spain, of its antidepressant Elopram (citalopram) and the impact of generic competition had resulted in a negative price effect, but added that the reversal of certain price cuts in the Italian drug market had partially offset this decrease.