Report: S&N to raise R&D budget

Smith & Nephew ($SNN) will up its R&D budget by $300 million over the next 5 years as it looks to pump up sales in the so-called BRIC countries. The company hopes to raise sales in these countries from $170 million currently to $500 million in 2016, according to the U.K.'s Telegraph.

CEO Olivier Bohuon told the paper that his company hasn't been doing much in Brazil, Russia or India, and that's something that needs to change. "We have not been doing a lot in emerging markets. We've been doing good in China and now have revenues of $100m there. That's all."

He added that his company is creating a particular model to answer the needs of these countries.

When announcing its quarterly results earlier this month, the company pointed to emerging markets as one of 5 new strategic priorities to drive future success.

- here's the Telegraph article