Novartis commits $23bn to US manufacturing amid tariff threats

2 weeks ago 12

Jenna Philpott

Fri, Apr 11, 2025, 9:55 AM 2 min read

The Swiss drugmaker said it plans to found a biomedical probe hub successful San Diego—its 2nd successful the country. Novartis volition besides conception 4 caller manufacturing facilities successful yet-to-be-announced states – 3 focused connected biologics and 1 connected chemic cause substances.

Following the firm’s $1.75bn acquisition of radiopharmaceuticals institution Mariana Oncology and the $745m woody with Ratio Therapeutics, Novartis is besides expanding its radioligand therapy capabilities successful the US with caller sites successful Florida and Texas.

This concern is portion of a broader inclination among pharmaceutical companies exploring options to reshore operations to the US arsenic President Donald Trump announced wide-ranging tariffs connected imported products. Although finished cause products are exempt from the precocious announced 10% broad tariff, connected 8 April, Trump said this “major” tariff connected pharmaceutical imports volition beryllium announced soon.

The Novartis concern marks the archetypal large US enlargement by a European pharma institution pursuing the tariff warnings. American-headquartered firms similar Eli Lilly, and Johnson & Johnson (J&J), person already announced their ain plans to summation US-based production. Eli Lilly disclosed a $27bn concern successful February 2025, portion J&J said successful March 2025 that it would walk much than $55m connected caller facilities.

MSD precocious opened a $1bn manufacturing installation successful North Carolina to summation accumulation of its blockbuster HPV vaccine, Gardasil. The institution described the concern arsenic portion of a broader $12bn committedness to US superior concern since 2018, with different $8bn expected by 2028.

Novartis said it volition beryllium capable to “produce 100% of its cardinal medicines end-to-end successful the US” pursuing the expansion. The institution expects the concern to make astir 1,000 nonstop jobs and an further 4,000 jobs crossed its proviso concatenation and surrounding communities.

Earlier this week, the European Federation of Pharmaceutical Industries and Associations (EFPIA) called for urgent enactment to antagonistic what it described arsenic a “risk of exodus” successful R&D and manufacturing. In a gathering with European Commission (EC) President Ursula von der Leyen, the radical said that unless the EU rapidly reforms its regulatory, intelligence property, and concern environment, drugmakers volition progressively displacement operations to the US.

In the 10 April announcement, Novartis’ CEO Vas Narasimhan said: “These investments besides bespeak the pro-innovation argumentation and regulatory situation successful the US that supports our quality to find the adjacent aesculapian breakthroughs for patients.”

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