Glaxo to Cut More Jobs As Generics Bite

GlaxoSmithKline, Britain's biggest drugs company, plans to cut more costs with the loss of several thousand jobs as competition from new generic drugs weighs on sales, newspapers reported.

The Sunday Times said up to 4,000 jobs could go as part of an effort to re-focus on fast-growing emerging markets.  GlaxoSmithKline, which doesn't typically disclose the number or location of job losses, declined to comment. The company employs 99,000 staff worldwide.

Glaxo has been hit by lower than expected demand for its Pandemrix swine flu vaccine this year as concerns over the pandemic fade. It also faces new competition from generic versions of its Valtrex herpes treatement after the drug's U.S. patent expired last month.  The company, created from the 2000 merger of Glaxo Wellcome and Smithkline Beecham, has said it aims to identify $2.77 billion of savings every year.  Rival drugmaker Astrazeneca last week said it planned to cut 8,000 jobs, or 12% of its workforce, to counter the impact of new generic drugs.