Brace Yourself: Drug Prices May Rise as Trump Targets Imports

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that his administration might start imposing tariffs on pharmaceutical imports at the end of the month, while noting the timeline for duties on semiconductors was similar to that of those on pharmaceuticals.

Trump made these remarks, suggesting that his administration will phase in the tariffs on pharmaceuticals to allow time for companies to construct their production facilities in the United States.

“Probably at the end of the month, we’re going to start off with a low tariff and give pharmaceutical companies a year or so to build,” he said during a press availability after returning from a public event in Pittsburgh. “Then we’re going to make it a very high tariff.”

He added that the implementation schedule for tariffs on semiconductors was similar but did not provide further details.

Last week, Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick announced that the Trump administration will complete its national security investigations into semiconductor and pharmaceutical imports by the end of this month. This announcement suggests that Trump’s tariff declarations on these imports might be imminent.

Lutnick was referring to the probes he initiated in April under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act of 1962. This law empowers the president to adjust imports into the United States when he determines they pose a threat to national security. (Yonhap)