South Korean drugmaker Celltrion said Wednesday that it posted record high earnings in the second quarter, fueled by expanded global sales of Remsima, a cheaper biosimilar copy of Johnson & Johnson’s Remicade. 

During the April-June period, Celltrion’s operating profit jumped 79.4 percent on-year to 138.3 billion won ($123 million), while revenue rose 33 percent to 246.1 billion won, marking the company’s best quarterly performance to date, the firm said.

Celltrion attributed its earnings hike to the continued sales of Remsima, which was the first Remicade-referencing biosimilar to be approved by the European Medicines Agency and the US Food and Drug Administration. 

Remsima has cemented its place in Europe, taking up around 42 percent of Remicade’s market share as of now, according to global health care market analytic firm IMS Health.

In the US, Celltrion’s sales and marketing partner Pfizer has been selling Remsima under the name Inflectra since November 2016, as the only available alternative drug to replace Remicade.

Inflectra's sales have been continually rising. Around $21.3 million worth of Remsima was prescribed in the US in the second quarter, compared to just $6.7 million in the first quarter of this year, according to Celltrion. 

Since obtaining the EMA approval in February, Celltrion’s Rituxan-referencing biosimilar, Truxima, has also begun contributing to sales, as it has been commercialized in several major European countries including the UK, Germany, Spain, the Netherlands, Italy and Ireland.

“Considering our performance in the first half of this year, we expect to easily meet our stated target earnings for this year,” Celltrion said. The firm is aiming for 860.4 billion won in revenue and an operating profit of 488.6 billion won for 2017. 

The firm also said it holds high expectations for the subcutaneous version of Remsima, designed to be injected directly into the fatty layer of skin. If approved, the drug is set to become the first of its kind in the market and expand patient convenience.

By Sohn Ji-young (jys@heraldcorp.com)