US President Donald Trump has said he will “probably” impose tariffs on pharmaceutical drug imports from the end of July.
Speaking to reporters today, Trump said he would start out at a lower tariff rate and give companies a year to build domestic factories before they face higher import tax rates.
He said this could come into effect “at the end of the month”.
Australian exports to the US are already subject to a 10 per cent tariff, with Trump recently saying that could rise to 15 or 20 per cent by August 1.
But now it appears pharmaceutical exports could come in for special attention.
Trump previously said tariffs on pharmaceuticals could climb as high as 200 per cent.
This would render Australian-made drugs far more expensive for US residents to purchase.
Pharmaceuticals are Australia’s second-biggest export to the US, coming just after beef, with an annual value of more than $1.6 billion, according to the Observatory of Economic Complexity.
Treasurer Jim Chalmers acknowledged to ABC radio earlier this month that Australia’s pharmaceutical industry was “exposed” to any US tariffs.
Trump has said one of his tariff-related goals is to drive manufacturing back to the US.