Basel – the pharmaceutical company Roche wants to separate itself from its vitamins and fine chemicals. As the “Süddeutsche Zeitung” reported, Roche could only moderately increase sales last year, net profit dropped 57 percent. “We check currently possible strategic alternatives for the future development of vitamins business,” CEO Franz B. HUMER confirmed since a long time existing rumors. Although Roche is the world leader in this sector with a turnover of 1.8 billion Swiss francs, the vitamins have provided only moderate profit margins and strong buses of European and American competition protection the group in recent years. According to Humer, penalties for price-fixing are now likely to 3.5 billion Swiss francs. Made additional provisions in the amount of CHF 760 million for complaints from customers in the United States are included in the last year. Roche has still not decided whether the scope is independent or sold. Conceivable the sale to “a company that is active in similar areas” was, Humer. The sale to a competitor come out of the question. In the operating business, Roche has made a solid profit. Shiny developed the diagnostic, which grew significantly faster than the market with a sales increase of 14 percent and expanded its leadership in the world still. In the far largest pharma, who was often in the past few years in the critique, Roche was able to increase sales by six percent to CHF 18.7 billion. In the important US market, where Roche’s 42 percent of its turnover, the group put to 12 percent – significantly less than the rival of Novartis. Four Roche drug sales is over 1 billion Swiss francs. Especially in the treatment of cancer, where Roche has become one after sales number, the Group intends to grow vigorously. Here, according to Pharmachef William Burns, a sales increase from today four to six to eight billion francs is planned until 2005. (ths)