United Drug, the healthcare services group, today issued a trading statement in respect of its four divisions in the six months to the end of March and said that it has experienced good trading conditions and revenue growth in each of its four divisions.

The group says that it it expects the strength of current trading to continue into the second half of the financial year.

While it cautions that profits and earnings may be impacted by the continuing weakness in the value of sterling relative to the euro, it is still expecting to report double digit growth over last year's results.

The company said that the deterioration in the sterling exchange rate relative to the euro does not impact on cash flows,  but does reduce the value of sterling profits.

"The Group remains positive about the fundamentals of its core markets and its position within those markets, despite the ongoing challenge presented by Government regulation impacting on limited parts of the business. The Group continues to see opportunities to expand the business, both organically and through acquisition, and has a very strong balance sheet and positive internally generated cash flows to support these growth objectives," the statement said.

The Company operates across four divisions, Pharma Wholesale, Supply Chain Services, Medical & Scientific and Contract Sales & Marketing Services.

United Drug is the largest pharmaceutical wholesaler in the island of Ireland. It is the market leader in contract distribution outsourcing (pre-wholesaling) in Ireland and has achieved the No. 1 position in the UK through its joint venture business UniDrug Distribution (UDG). The Company also provides distribution related services in the areas of pharmaceutical contract packaging and speciality distribution in the UK, Holland and Belgium.

Full Statement