Posted on 04/09/2025 7:46:09 AM PDT by Red Badger
Pharmaceutical imports were initially exempt from Trump’s first set of reciprocal tariffs last week but his administration has since indicated that levies on the sector are coming.
Global drugmakers’ stocks dropped across the board on Wednesday after U.S. President Donald Trump reiterated plans for a “major” tariff on pharmaceutical imports, threatening an interwoven supply chain across the world, and as his country-specific reciprocal tariffs took effect, leading to more pain in global markets.
Pharmaceutical imports were initially exempt from Trump’s first set of reciprocal tariffs last week but his administration has since indicated that levies on the sector, which in the past has been excluded from such actions, are coming.
The U.S. president has said the tariffs will incentivize drug companies to move operations to the U.S. However, analysts and companies have raised concerns about the difficulty in setting up manufacturing in the United States.
Shares of major U.S. drugmakers such as Gilead Sciences, Pfizer, Merck and Eli Lilly fell between 2% and 4% in premarket trading.
In Europe, a basket of healthcare stocks .SXDP fell 5% to its lowest since October 2022, leading losses among sectoral indexes on the region-wide STOXX 600. The index was heading for its biggest one-day drop since March 2020.
Trump had also threatened the duties on Friday after his first set of “reciprocal” tariffs exempted pharma products. Trump has not said when and by how much he plans to raise taxes on pharma imports.
“While the details are scant, we are strongly opposed to tariffs on any pharmaceuticals -- these will likely do little to shift manufacturing back to the U.S.,” said BMO Capital Markets analyst Evan Seigerman.
(Excerpt) Read more at nbcnews.com ...
ED and hair loss drugs hit hardest? According to the tv that is #1 and #2 drugs needed in America.
Much needed tough medicine.
It’s going to hurt, but let it be so until folks come to terms. And, by the way, START arresting ALL involved in stealing, misappropriating, embezzling, getting kickbacks on the billions/trillions of dollars of our money that has disappeared, no matter WHO it is. If not, you are facing a tax rebellion. You WILL NOT make me your slave. You have to kill me. If millions begin to think this way, you’re going to have a job on your hands.
Is Pfizer taking it in the shorts?
I hope so.
I used to work for Pfizer’s medical electronics subdivision in Maryland until they sold it to an Israeli company and I was laid off...........
Interesting side note - the mayor of deep-blue Buffalo NY just said the city needs to raise property taxes, for various reasons, but specifically mentioned increased employee health-care costs (which is not new) - but specifically mentioned cost for Ozempic and Wegovy (which is new).
First time I have ever heard that cost of obesity drugs for city employees used as a justification for tax increases.
Only in America!
TRANSLATION:
We have too many fat pigs on our staff in Buffalo..............
“Much needed tough medicine.”
I agree... The residuals should actually bring prices down after the initial shock. Insurance companies will say no way to much higher prices so pharma will have to lower their highly inflated markups. Cause and effect.
The US is the largest market for pharma, and the one that pays the lion share of the research and development costs. It is also the biggest profit center with the least amount of oversight.
Pharma makes up a huge portion of the ad revenue for all media.
This is not a shot across the bow, it is a hit below the waterline.
“Pharma makes up a huge portion of the ad revenue for all media.”
Yeah, we know.
It’s a bad idea.
You don’t want American patients fearing for their drugs (and lives) running wild in the streets or overwhelming the telephones lines to Congress.
Also, insurance companies expect to pay ~$X billion in 2025 for drugs.
Increasing what insurance companies have to pay for drugs by even 10% will send their lobbyists to Congress.
Trump has pushed hard. Let the 10% or more clear the banks and clear away the Chinese and European instinct to fight.
“cost of obesity drugs for city employees used as a justification for tax increases”
Take a look at government employees (or the local Walmart).
After the temporary pain of adjustment,
— production facilities shifted back here. More US jobs
— war footing restored, not relying on imports, not just a Consumer/Service Economy
— tainted drug problem (fentanyl etc.) lessened bigly if it’s not coming in from overseas.
Rx:
Take one tariff a day for a month, then call me in the morning.
— Dr. Trump
What needs to be done is to equalize drug pricing among industrial countries.
Only Congress has the power to do that. This might be done a federal surcharge on shipments of American drugs to cheapskate foreign countries, just as the Canadian guy raised the price of Canadian electricity sent to the USA.
If the US pays $10 a pill and a European country pays $2 a pill, the US government could impose an $8 surcharge on each pill destined for that country.
Equalizing drug pricing would allow the 10% tariff to get reduced as our domestic producers would not be disadvantaged by drug pricing.
I would prefer that Western governments by cooperative agreement buy drugs as a group so all get equal pricing and a massive volume discount.
Ha Ha.
Better start producing in the US again.
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