Daiichi Sankyo books net loss, sees mild recovery

TOKYO, May 12 (Reuters) - Japanese drugmaker Daiichi Sankyo (4568.T) booked a hefty annual net loss on its stake in India's generic drugmaker Ranbaxy Laboratories (RANB.BO) and forecast a small profit this year.

The third-largest Japanese drugmaker booked a net loss of 335.8 billion yen ($3.5 billion) in the year ended on March 31, compared with a net profit of 97.7 billion yen a year earlier.

Daiichi Sankyo bought a majority stake in Ranbaxy last year, aiming to take advantage of rising demand for generic drugs.

But the stake lost more than two-thirds of its value by the end of the financial year, hurt by a U.S. import ban on Ranbaxy products, sharp declines in equity markets and a weaker rupee.

Daiichi Sankyo, which aims to launch a potential blockbuster blood thinner Effient this year, forecast a net profit of 40 billion yen in the year to March 2010, short of a consensus forecast of 74.2 billion yen in a poll of 14 analysts by Thomson Reuters.

Japanese drugmakers, like their global rivals, have been active in acquisitions, seeking to cope with the rising costs of developing drugs and to widen their product portfolios ahead of patent expiries on key drugs. (Reporting by Yumiko Nishitani; Editing by Edwina Gibbs)