Nervous GlaxoSmithKline pulls cash out of eurozone to avoid crisis

GlaxoSmithKline has been pulling cash out of some eurozone countries in case the debt crisis takes a turn for the worse.

Speaking at the drugmaker's annual results presentation in London, the recently knighted chief executive Sir Andrew Witty said in the past year the company had been withdrawing "tens of millions of pounds" from "most of the eurozone" – excluding Germany.

"You don't have money in banks you're nervous about," he explained. Some of that money is being used to pay dividends to shareholders, which rose more than expected, by 8% to 70p a share (plus 5p related to the sale of the North American over-the-counter brands).

GSK has also "raised the ante" on collecting debts from eurozone governments, especially in southern Europe. GSK sells many of its drugs to wholesalers but also sells some directly to hospitals. "We've been able to reduce our debts in southern Europe" leaving GSK with a figure that is "not scary," said Witty. He welcomed the European Central Bank's efforts to pump money into the banking system in the past six months, saying they'd had a "very positive effect on banking liquidity and confidence".

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