Reckitt Benckiser has seen a year-on-year improvement in the performance of its pharmaceuticals division in the first half of the year.

The company's prescription drug business, which is responsible for the Subutex and Suboxone brands, accrued total net revenue of 310 million pounds in the first six months of 2010, up by 24 per cent on the first half of 2009.

In total, the business unit now accounts for eight per cent of Reckitt Benckiser revenues and has seen major improvements in its margins and profit levels.

This strong performance was reflected across the health and personal care firm as a whole, with the group's total net revenue rising by six per cent year-on-year to 4.1 billion pounds.

Bart Becht, chief executive officer of Reckitt Benckiser, said: "This performance benefited from excellent growth in developing markets and the success of new Powerbrand product initiatives."

This comes a week after the company announced that it has made an offer to purchase SSL International, the healthcare company behind Durex contraceptives.