GlaxoSmithKline appoints Emma Walmsley next CEO

GlaxoSmithKline (GSK) has announced the nomination of Ms. Emma Walmsley, the current boss of its consumer healthcare business as new chief executive of the company.

Walmsley's appointment fills a vacuum created by Andrew Witty, who announced his decision to take a bow in March and will retire at the end of March 2017.

Walmsley takes up the top job lacking the direct pharmaceutical experience that some investors had sought amid Glaxo's checkered record for developing new blockbuster drugs.

GSK on Tuesday was the only stock to decline in a rising European pharmaceuticals sector after the announcement was made.