Revenue from Nexium, an ulcer treatment, jumped 41 per cent to $891 million (€733 million) as net income for the period was $833 million compared with $666 million in the same quarter of last year.

The company also stated it was on target to meet its full year earnings per share goal of $2 - $2.15. Sales also increased by 19 per cent to $5.29 billion from $4.44 billion a year ago.

Sales of new cholesterol-lowering drug Crestor totalled $207m, above forecasts of $182m, giving Crestor a 6.8 per cent share of the US market for drugs of its type and keeping it on course to reach its sales target of a 20 per cent share of the $20 billion market

Crestor is one of the drugs helping to make up for declining sales of older drugs such as ulcer pill Losec/Prilosec that have been replaced on the market by cheaper generic versions.

Other highlights included the sale of the schizophrenia drug, Seroquel, which shot up a massive 81 per cent to £265m.

AstraZeneca's next major new drug hope is an anticoagulant pill, Exanta, which is awaiting approval as a treatment to prevent strokes in patients with certain heart problems.