THE boss of Alliance Boots' pharmaceutical wholesale division has been ranked one of the most powerful women in business for the second year running.

Ornella Barra, chief executive of the division appears on the top ten of Fortune Magazine's ranking of global leaders outside the USA.

A pharmacist by training and an honorary professor at the University of Nottingham's School of Pharmacy, Italian-born Ms Barra came into the business following the merger between Boots and Alliance Unichem.

She played a key role in the development of the international pharmaceutical wholesaling operation which formed a key part of the Alliance business.

Today, she is in charge of a division which operates in 25 countries, supplying medicines to 160,000 pharmacies, health centres and hospitals.