OSAKA -- Takeda Chemical Industries Ltd. said Friday its group pretax profit increased 37 percent to 359.21 billion yen in fiscal 2001 from the previous year due to brisk sales of medical products at home and abroad, and the weak yen.
The Osaka-based pharmaceutical also reported a group net profit of 235.66 billion yen, up 60.5 percent, on group sales of 1.005 trillion yen , up 4.3 percent.
Takeda Chemical said medical product sales were strong in the year to March 31, with sales by a U.S. subsidiary of a medicine for diabetics rising to 121.8 billion yen from 69.3 billion yen the previous year.
It also improved its net balance by selling some chemical-product businesses to a joint venture launched in April last year with Mitsui Chemicals Inc.
Takeda Chemical will pay a full-year dividend of 60 yen per share for the reporting year, up from 50 yen the previous year. Its yearend dividend came to 30 yen per share, up from 25 yen.
For the current fiscal year, the company expects to log a group pretax profit of 361 billion yen and net profit of 236 billion yen on group sales of 1.04 trillion yen.