In a press release, the company states that it will simplify its organization and relocate resources. Currently, it has 78,400 employees.
"While the market has changed, particularly when it comes to overweight, and has become more consumption-driven and competitive, our company must also develop," says Mike Doustdar, CEO of Novo Nordisk in a press release.
The announcement is causing a stir in Denmark.
We are in a shock phase. There are 5,000 employees who do not know what will happen in the coming months, says Kia Phillp Dollerschell in the trade union Djøf, which, among other things, represents lawyers and economists, to TV2.
Affects GDP
The cutbacks are expected to result in annual savings of eight billion Danish kronor by the end of 2026. This is happening at the same time as the company is now lowering its profit forecast for 2025. On the Copenhagen Stock Exchange, the announcement also has a positive effect on the stock, which rises 2.5 percent, although it is down 44 percent since the turn of the year.
Denmark's Minister of Economy Stephanie Lose (Venstre) points out that the cutbacks will affect both Danish GDP and exports.
"It is clear that if Novo Nordisk's growth declines sharply, it will also affect important Danish key figures," she writes in an email to Politiken.
But the cutbacks do not mean a catastrophe for the Danish economy, notes Niels Rønholt, chief economist at Jyske Bank. Even after the cutbacks, the pharmaceutical giant's contribution to the Danish state treasury will be far greater than five years ago, he emphasizes in an interview with DR.
It is essential to remember that the Danish economy as a whole does not stand and fall with Novo Nordisk, he says.
Largest in Europe
The Danish pharmaceutical company has in recent years become one of Europe's largest companies thanks to the success of, among other things, Ozempic, which has proven to be very successful when it comes to weight loss.
But the competition has intensified. Last month, it was announced that CEO Lars Fruergaard Jørgensen will be replaced by Mike Doustdar.
In Sweden, Novo Nordisk has a market company with approximately 120 employees and headquarters in Malmö.
The company's press service cannot currently answer how the operation in Sweden is affected by the cutbacks and has no information on how many of the employees in Denmark commute from Sweden.
