Swiss pharmaceuticals giant Novartis said on Tuesday that its 2020 net profit jumped 13 per cent to $8.1 billion (€6.7bn) after a restructuring saw it hive off its Alcon business.

Sales edged up three per cent to $48.7 billion, the company said in a statement. Analysts surveyed by Swiss group AWP had forecast sales at around $49.1 billion.

Boss Vasant Narasimhan said that despite the challenges posed by COVID-19, the company had put in an “excellent performance” last year.

The pandemic saw sales swing sharply in the first half of 2020 as health services stocked up medicines even as doctor consultations fell.

The pandemic saw sales swing sharply in the first half of 2020 as health services stocked up medicines even as doctor consultations fell

Government lockdowns to curb the pandemic had a greater impact on some sectors than others, it said, citing opthalmology and dermatology.

Sales at its generic medicines unit Sandoz were down one per cent on the year while the main pharmaceuticals division posted a gain of three per cent, helped by demand for its new cardiac treatments such as Entresto.

Novartis said it expects sales to rise this year in the bottom to the middle of a one to five per cent range.