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Amgen will axe 450 jobs in its second round of layoffs

By Nithya Bose in US business news, posted March 17, 2023

Biotech firm Amgen plans to cut 450 employees in its second wave of job cuts this year.

The California-based business is grappling with intensifying pressure on drug prices and high inflation and will cut around two percent of its workforce.

A company spokeswoman said: "We made these changes to realign our expense base in the face of intensifying pressure on drug prices and high levels of inflation.”

Amgen employed almost 25,200 employees in more than 50 countries as of December 31, 2022.

The number of layoffs by US companies in January and February of this year reached a new record since 2009.

Amgen's move to reduce its workforce highlights the impact of rapidly rising interest rates on the healthcare sector.

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As part of organizational changes, the biopharmaceutical firm eliminated around 300 workers in January.

Its revenue dipped slightly in the fourth quarter as a 4 percent gain in sales of its own drugs was offset by lower revenue from its deal to produce COVID-19 antibody treatments for Eli Lilly.

The biotech company forecasted revenue of $26 billion to $27.2 billion in 2023, while analysts expected $27.17 billion.

Source: Reuters

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