Merck & Co., Inc. achieved sales of US$ 5,772 million during the second quarter ended June 2006 as against $ 5,468 million during the corresponding period of last year, a growth of 6 per cent. The company's net profit went up sharply by 108 per cent to $1,499 million from $ 721 million with earning per share of $0.69 as against $ 0.33 in the similar period of last year.

"Our strong second-quarter performance keeps us on track with the commitments we made in December," said Richard T. Clark, chief executive officer and president.

"The results demonstrate that we can deliver growth while we make the fundamental changes necessary to return Merck to an industry leadership position. We announced two major product approvals, Gardasil and Zostavax, and presented important new clinical data on Vytorin, Januvia and Zolinza that underscore the strength of our core business," he added.

Materials and production costs increased 25% for the second quarter of 2006, including $168 million recorded in the second quarter for costs associated with the global restructuring program, primarily related to accelerated depreciation and asset impairment costs. Excluding these costs, materials and production increased 10 per cent for the quarter. The gross margin was 75.0 per cent which reflects a 2.9 percentage point unfavourable impact relating to the restructuring costs as noted above.

Marketing and administrative expenses were $1,734 million, a decrease of 1 per cent in the second quarter of 2006. The results reflect the increase in activities to support the three recently approved vaccines, offset by reduced spending in support of Zocor.

Research and development expenses were $1,173 million for the quarter, representing an increase of 24 per cent, including $296 million recorded in the second quarter for acquired research resulting from the GlycoFi acquisition.

Restructuring costs were a net credit of $7 million for the quarter representing separation and other related costs associated with the Company's restructuring program announced in November 2005, offset by gains on sales of facilities in connection with the program. In the second quarter of 2006, the Company eliminated approximately 500 positions in addition to the 2,900 announced in previous quarters.

Merck anticipates full-year 2006 EPS of $2.40 to $2.48, excluding the restructuring charges related to site closures and position eliminations. Merck anticipates reported full-year 2006 EPS of $2.10 to $2.24. Please see pages 9-10 of this news release for details of Merck's full-year 2006 financial guidance.