- Novartis has increased its pharmaceutical stockpiles in the United States to last until mid-2026 as protection against potential Trump administration tariffs
- The Swiss pharmaceutical company has announced $23 billion in US investments and aims to manufacture locally within 3-4 years to mitigate tariff impacts
Novartis has built up substantial pharmaceutical stockpiles in the United States and announced major manufacturing investments as the Swiss company prepares for potential tariffs under President Trump’s trade policies, CEO Vas Narasimhan revealed on Saturday.
Speaking to Swiss newspaper Neue Zuercher Zeitung, Narasimhan disclosed that the company has significantly increased its US stockpiles to provide protection until mid-2026.
“We have significantly increased our stockpiles in the US, so they will certainly last until mid-2026.”
Vas Narasimhan, CEO, Novartis
The move reflects a broader pharmaceutical industry trend of domestic US manufacturing expansion. Companies including Lilly announced a “$5 billion investment to build a new pharmaceutical manufacturing facility in Virginia” on September 18, while British drugmaker GSK announced on September 17 that it would “invest $30 billion in US research and development.” These investments come as pharmaceutical companies respond to Trump’s threats to impose import tariffs on the industry.
Pharmaceuticals currently remain exempt from the 39% tariffs Washington imposed on Switzerland last month, though the pharmaceutical industry awaits results from an ongoing investigation that could trigger sector-specific import duties. A bilateral US-EU trade agreement reached in July includes a 15% tariff on most pharmaceuticals, excluding some generic drugs.
Novartis has committed $23 billion in medium-term US investments and plans to manufacture its most important American market products locally. Narasimhan estimates that significant operational shifts could occur within two years, particularly for final filling and packaging operations in the US, which he says “should allow us to fully mitigate any tariffs.”
The pharmaceutical industry faces uncertainty over potential tariffs reaching 250% following Washington’s Section 232 investigation into the pharma sector. Narasimhan describes these potential duties as “difficult to estimate” in terms of likelihood, noting that the company is “working on all possible scenarios” while awaiting completion of the Section 232 investigation with no clear timeline for results.
