Shire sells medicine portfolio

Shire wants to expand its international reach

Drug firm Shire Pharmaceuticals has agreed to sell a portfolio of medicines to Spain's Almirall for $213m (£105m).

Shire said the products included skin treatments Solaraze and Vaniqa and that the medicines were not in its core therapeutic areas.

The drugmaker added it will now focus on treatments for attention deficit disorder, gastrointestinal diseases and human genetic therapies.

Shire added the sale would allow it to expand its international reach.

"Our emphasis in the international markets is on developing competitive positions for our global products that meet the needs of specialist physicians and their patients ," chief executive Matthew Emmens said.

Shares in the firm rose 11 pence, or 0.88%, at 1,263.00 pence in morning trade on the London market.

The Hampshire-based company is one of the UK's leading specialist pharmaceutical firms, with operations across Europe as well as in the US and Canada.