Desk Report:
The United States is implementing a tariff of up to 100 percent on imports of branded and patented pharmaceutical drugs from October 1. US President Donald Trump announced this on Thursday.
India’s pharmaceutical industry, which is one of the most dependent on trade with the United States, may be significantly affected by this decision.
Trump wrote on his own Truth Social, “Starting October 1, 2025, we will impose a 100 percent tariff on any branded or patented pharmaceutical product. If a company builds their pharmaceutical manufacturing plant in America, then the calculation is different. If construction has begun, then no tariff will be imposed on those pharmaceutical products.”
According to Trump’s latest tariff policy, a 50 percent tariff has been imposed on imports of kitchen cabinets and bathroom vanities, 30 percent on sofas and other furniture, and 25 percent on heavy truck imports. Although Trump could not provide any legal justification for imposing these tariffs, he claimed that these tariffs were necessary for ‘national security and other reasons’.
Analysts say that it is clear from Trump’s Truth Post that Trump is not so interested in imposing tariffs only because of the trade structure and import taxes. They believe that increasing domestic production is also a major reason behind this.
Meanwhile, India has been worried again after Trump’s announcement. The largest export market for medicines from India is the United States. According to the data of the Pharmaceuticals Export Promotion Council of India, 31 percent of India’s pharmaceutical exports worth $ 27.9 billion in the last fiscal year went to the United States. In monetary terms, this is $ 8.7 billion (Tk 77,138 crore). In the first half of 2025, medicines worth $ 3.7 billion (Tk 32,505 crore) were exported.
According to various reports, India supplies over 45 percent of the generic drugs and 15 percent of the biosimilars used in the US. Companies like Dr. Reddy’s, Aurobindo Pharma, Zydus Life Sciences, Sun Pharma and Gland Pharma earn 30-50 percent of their total revenue from the American market.
Although the latest US tariffs mainly target branded and patented drugs. Such drugs are mainly controlled by multinational companies, there is uncertainty as to whether India’s complex generic and specialty drugs will also come under the watch. At present, apart from Sun Pharma, no other Indian company has branded/patented products for sale in the US. Moreover, major companies already have manufacturing facilities in the US.
It is worth noting that Trump has already imposed a 50 percent tariff on Indian imports, which also includes a 25 percent ‘penalty’ for continuing to buy oil from Russia.
