(Reuters) – Pfizer Inc on Tuesday forecast 2023 sales of its COVID-19 products of $21.5 billion that fell short of Wall Street expectations, hit by lower demand in international markets and slower uptake of booster vaccines.
The U.S. drugmaker said it expects sales of $13.5 billion from the vaccine for 2023, below Refinitiv estimates of $14.39 billion, and projected $8 billion in sales of its antiviral pill, Paxlovid, short of $10.33 billion the Street expects.
The lower forecast casts uncertainty over the future of Pfizer’s biggest selling products, which are expected to come under pressure this year as government spending on COVID vaccines and treatments declines.
The drugmaker has been hoping to offer its vaccine through the private market in the United States and other markets as government-backed vaccination campaigns for original shots near their end.
(Reporting by Manas Mishra and Bhanvi Satija in Bengaluru; Editing by Sriraj Kalluvila)
