Merck & Co. Inc. suffered setback during the year ended December 2005 and its sales as well as net profit declined, on account of Vioxx withdrawal and restructuring programme. The company sales declined by 4 per cent to $22,012 million during 2005 from $22,939 million in the previous year. The Vioxx withdrawal impacted sales by 7 per cent. Its net income declined by 20 per cent to $4,631 million from $5,813 million. The fall in profit pushed down its earning per share to $2.10 from $2.61.

Richard T Clark, president and CEO, said, "Merck's performance for the fully year was strong and serves as a platform for the future. In December, we outlined our strategic plan to return Merck to an industry-leading position and we have now begun the important work of executing against it. We are focused on priority disease areas, redefining our drug discovery and development model, working to achieve leadership in emerging pharmaceutical markets, building a new commercial model and creating a lean and flexible cost structure. I am confident in our ability to make this plan a reality."

As a part of the global restructuring programme announced in November, Merck plans to sell or close five manufacturing sites and two preclinical sites by the end of 2008. The company is also planning to close its basic research center in Terlings Park, United Kingdom. Further, the company is planning to eliminate approximately 7,000 positions as a part of the global restructuring programme. Merck has eliminated 1,100 positions till December 31, 2005.