Lloydspharmacy and AAH Pharmaceuticals parent company Celesio has declared it is "back on track" financially after a 10.1 per cent increase in operating earnings to £223 million (€283.5m) in the first half of 2012. Net adjusted profit rose 19.5 per cent to £83.3m (€106m) While Celesio's overall revenue climbed just 1.8 per cent, revenue at its patient and consumer solutions business rose 6.5 per cent to £1.35 billion (€1.72bn). The latter had been "primarily driven by a strong services and OTC business in the UK", the company reported.

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	However, earnings at its pharmacy solutions division fell 5.1 per cent to £155.1 million (€197.3m) on a 1 per cent increase in revenue to £7.49bn (€9.53bn). Celesio said that "competitive pressure and regulatory intervention, mainly in France and the UK" hampered growth.

Celsio said the results marked a turnaround for the company, whose operating profits plummeted 26 per cent to £430.8 million (€514.8m) in the 2011 fiscal year, following spend on restructuring and factors such as government measures and the realignment of the British pharmacy business.

Celesio CEO Markus Pinger said this week that stabilisation measures implemented last year had put the business "back on track despite the persistently difficult market environment". "Strategically, we have also made considerable progress," he said. "We have managed to sell Movianto, Pharmexx and our activities in the Czech Republic earlier than originally anticipated. We can now focus more strongly on accelerating growth in our core business." Mr Pinger added that Celesio's new group structure would "boost Celesio's positive development through considerable synergy effects". Celsio also reported that its global headcount had been cut by 1,000 employees over the period to 45,448. The news follows last week's announcement that the company was set to make up to 120 staff at its UK head office redundant, as Lloydspharmacy and AAH share their back office functions.