On 29 July, MSD announced its H1 2025 results, with total revenue of USD 31.3 billion, down 2% year on year (YoY). MSD’s pharmaceutical business sales were USD 27.7 billion, down 3%, while revenue from China fell 70% to USD 1.075 billion, accounting for 3.9% of MSD’s global pharmaceutical business.

Notably, MSD also announced the launch of a new multi-year optimisation plan alongside its interim results, aimed at transforming its product portfolio through productivity actions expected to deliver annual cost savings of USD 3 billion by the end of 2027, which will be fully reinvested to support new product launches and its pipeline across multiple therapeutic areas.

As part of this plan, MSD approved a new restructuring program in July. The company expects to eliminate some administrative, sales and R&D positions under this program. However, MSD will continue to hire for new roles in strategic growth areas of the business. Additionally, MSD will reduce its global real estate footprint and continue to optimise its manufacturing network to align with customer demand.

In the first half of this year, blockbuster drug KEYTRUDA® (pembrolizumab) HCP generated sales of USD 15.2 billion, though growth slowed to 7% YoY. Other oncology products also grew: first in class HIF 2α inhibitor Welireg (belzutifan) delivered sales of USD 300 million in the first half, up 42% YoY, while LYNPARZA®(olaparib) HCP and LENVIMA® (lenvatinib) capsules 10 mg & 4 mg HCP contributed USD 682 million and USD 523 million to MSD respectively.

MSD’s other flagship product, the HPV vaccine Gardasil/Gardasil 9, generated sales of USD 2.5 billion in the first semester, down 48% YoY. In the 2024 Q3 earnings report, the Gardasil series had already shown signs of weakness, primarily due to reduced demand in China due to intense competition after the first domestically produced nine-valent HPV vaccine in China was approved.
MSD has implemented countermeasures, pioneering the male market for HPV vaccines in China. In April this year, Gardasil 9 received an indication extension in China for use in males aged 16 to 26. This is also the first and only nine-valent HPV vaccine approved in the country for both eligible males and females.
Beyond HPV vaccines, MSD has also rapidly updated and iterated other vaccine products. In June 2024, the 21-valent pneumococcal conjugate vaccine Capvaxive was approved, generating USD 236 million in the first half of this year. This product, together with Pneumovax 23 and Vaxneuvance (15-valent), forms a more comprehensive pneumococcal vaccine portfolio. The latter two generated sales of USD 79 million (down 35%) and USD 459 million (up 13%) in H1 2025 respectively.
In the cardiovascular space, the new pulmonary arterial hypertension (PAH) drug Winrevair (sotatercept) is undoubtedly a rising star in MSD’s performance. The drug was approved in the US in March 2024 as the first activin signalling inhibitor therapy approved to treat PAH, requiring subcutaneous injection only once every three weeks. In the first half of this year, Winrevair delivered an impressive USD 615 million in sales and is on track to become a blockbuster in its first full year on the market.
The oral PCSK9 inhibitor enlicitide decanoate and the GLP-1R/GCGR dual agonist efinopegdutide are also high hopes for MSD. The former reported positive results in June from two Phase III studies (CORALreef HeFH and CORALreef AddOn) in hypercholesterolaemia.
In the anti-infective space, the RSV monoclonal antibody clesrovimab was approved in the US, becoming the first and only RSV prophylaxis option for infants that uses the same dose regardless of weight.
Looking ahead to the full year 2025, MSD expects global sales to be in the range of USD 64.3 billion to USD 65.3 billion.