Germany's Merck Posts Surge in Net

FRANKFURT -- Pharmaceutical and chemicals company Merck KGaA said Wednesday that second-quarter net profit soared from a year earlier, with growth across all four divisions.

Net profit, including continuing and discontinued operations, was €207.4 million ($327.5 million) compared with €85.5 million for the same period a year earlier -- but that fell below analyst expectations of €215 million.

Merck, which became Europe's largest biotechnology company after purchasing Serono in 2006, noted that 2007 figures are influenced ...