London (AFP) – British pharmaceutical giant GSK on Monday said longtime chief executive Emma Walmsley will be replaced by its chief commercial officer in January, as the company navigates US tariffs on the sector. Luke Miels will take over on January 1 from Walmsley, who will have been at the helm for almost nine years, GSK said in an unexpected announcement.
GSK earlier this month revealed it planned to invest $30 billion in the United States over the next five years. The investment was announced before US President Donald Trump last week said he would impose 100-percent tariffs on all branded pharmaceutical products from Wednesday, unless companies are building manufacturing plants in the United States. “2026 is a pivotal year for GSK to define its path for the decade ahead, and I believe the right moment for new leadership,” Walmsley said in the company’s statement. “Today, GSK is a biopharma innovator, with far stronger momentum and prospects than nine years ago,” she added.
Miels, 50, said he will be leading a company “with outstanding prospects”. “As the next CEO, I am privileged to take on this responsibility, with humility and ambition,” he added. Following news of the appointment, GSK shares climbed 2.4 percent in London morning deals, with analysts saying the upward direction was thanks to a smooth transition and hopes of further improved performance under the new boss.
– Tariffs test – Following their recent announcements to invest substantially in the United States, GSK and its British rival AstraZeneca will be hoping for some kind of tariff exemption, similar to that which the European Union says it is set to gain thanks to a trade deal with the world’s biggest economy. GSK announced its planned US investment during Trump’s recent state visit to the UK.
The commitment from the company, which has about 15,000 staff in the United States, includes a new biologics factory in Pennsylvania for developing respiratory and cancer treatments, and artificial intelligence development at its five US manufacturing sites. Walmsley, who was also promoted from within as CEO, steered GSK through the Covid-19 pandemic and the separation of its consumer healthcare division.
The 56-year-old spun off the unit in 2022, later named Haleon, to concentrate on GSK’s main pharmaceutical business. It came after Walmsley faced intense activist shareholder pressure over the company’s delays in producing Covid jabs and treatments. More recently, she oversaw GSK agreeing to pay $2.3 billion to end lawsuits alleging that its heartburn drug Zantac caused cancer, despite the group not admitting liability. That hit its annual profit in 2024, with the group on course for an improved performance this year thanks to booming sales of cancer medicines.
“Walmsley has been patiently leading a turnaround of the pharmaceutical giant almost ever since she took over in 2017 and she can point to real evidence of progress, including the spin-off of (the) consumer health arm,” said AJ Bell investment director Russ Mould. “However, litigation issues over Zantac and setbacks for its vaccine business…have held the business back.”
A former AstraZeneca executive, Miels’s annual base salary as CEO will be £1.375 million ($1.85 million), below Walmsley’s current level. However, he could earn millions more in yearly and long-term bonuses, the company statement noted.
© 2024 AFP
