Roche Q1 sales down 7% as COVID-related business wanes

By Ludwig Burger (Reuters) -Switzerland’s Roche said first-quarter sales dropped 7% on falling demand for its COVID-19 therapies and diagnostics kits, less steep than feared by analysts due to strong revenue growth from other pharmaceuticals. Quarterly group revenue fell to 15.3 billion Swiss francs ($17.2 billion), the company reported on Wednesday, beating market expectations of 14.8 billion francs. The company, which offers coronavirus lab testing as well as antibody treatment Ronapreve and repurposed arthr...