Trump announces new round of drug tariffs, muddying EU-US trade deal
Several major European drugmakers have already announced plans to invest in the US
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that the US will impose 100% tariffs on imports of branded or innovative drugs starting from 1 October, despite setting a much lower ceiling with the EU earlier this year.
So far, it’s unclear how exactly this will impact the EU. In a Truth Social post, Trump said that there is a catch: some exemptions will be granted to companies which have signalled that they will make new investments in manufacturing in the US.
Some European drugmakers have already announced plans to do so – including Roche, Novartis, and AstraZeneca.
This will be “defined as ‘breaking ground’ and/or ‘under construction’,” Trump wrote. “There will, therefore, be no Tariff on these Pharmaceutical Products if construction has started.”
In August, the EU and US agreed on a 15% flat tariff, exempting generics and tied to Washington’s Section 232 drug import investigation. Trump gave no legal basis for the levies.
It’s also an escalation from when Trump previously announced that he would be slapping tariffs on EU pharmaceuticals up to 250%, giving companies around a year to relocate.
EFPIA, the Brussels-based innovative pharma group, stressed that the EU and US “already have a trade agreement in place.”
“They should now continue discussions on how the EU can improve its support towards the cost of global research and development in a way which doesn’t harm patients in the EU and the US,” added Nathalie Moll, EFPIA director general.
Separately, Trump has been using the threat of tariffs to exert pressure on national governments to raise drug prices.
