Driven by strong sales in emerging markets such as China and Russia, net profits for the first six months rose to $5.56 billion, compared to $4.97 billion for the same period in 2013, the group said on Thursday.
Group turnover also grew, but at a slower rate, rising two percent to $28.66 billion, according to the earnings statement.
Novartis boss Joseph Jimenez hailed what he called his group's "solid financial performance".
The Basel-based pharma titan said it was keeping its full-year forecast of a growth in turnover of "low to mid-single digits".
In the second quarter, profits rose by three percent to reach $2.58 billion, Novartis said.
Novartis has seen radical changes in the past few months, announcing in April a string of multi-billion-dollar deals with rival GlaxoSmithKline in what Jimenez described as a "transformational moment" for the Swiss group.
The deals will see Novartis sharpen its focus on the high-grossing cancer sector and GSK seeking to boost its share in the vaccine market.
Member comments