Drugmaker Eli Lilly and Co. said Friday that it will build a $3.5 billion manufacturing facility in Pennsylvania, as the company expands domestic production and capitalizes on surging sales of obesity and diabetes treatments.
Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly, maker of weight-loss treatment Zepbound and diabetes drug Mounjaro, is in the midst of a broader domestic expansion that includes new plants it has announced in Texas, Virginia and Alabama. Another facility is under construction in Indiana.
The company said the new plant in Fogelsville, just outside Allentown, will make injectable drugs and devices, including producing weight-loss drug retatrutide, a once-a-week injectable drug that is still being studied and not available for public use.
Construction was expected to begin this year and finish in 2031, it said.
AmEx profits surge 13%
American Express saw its profits grow 13% in the fourth quarter, as the credit card giant continues to benefit from its well-to-do clientele spending heavily on their cards on everything from luxury goods to restaurants to travel.
The New York-based company said Friday it earned a profit of $2.46 billion, or $3.53 a share, compared to a profit of $2.17 billion, or $3.04 a share, in the same period a year earlier. The earnings were roughly in line with analysts’ forecasts, according to FactSet.
AmEx customers spent $506.2 billion on their cards in the fourth quarter, up from $464 billion in the same period a year ago.