logo
AstraZeneca unveils US$50bil investment as pharma tariff threat looms

AstraZeneca unveils US$50bil investment as pharma tariff threat looms

WASHINGTON: AstraZeneca plans to spend US$50 billion to expand manufacturing and research capabilities in the US by 2030, it said on Monday, the latest big investment by a pharmaceutical company reacting to President Donald Trump's tariff policy.
The investment will fund a new drug manufacturing facility in Virginia and expand research and development (R&D) and cell therapy manufacturing in Maryland, Massachusetts, California, Indiana and Texas, it said in a statement.
It will also upgrade the Anglo-Swedish drugmaker's US clinical trial supply network and support ongoing investment in novel medicines.
On Monday, AstraZeneca said the expansion supports its ambition to reach US$80 billion in annual revenue by 2030, with half coming from the US.
The US accounted for more than 40 per cent of AstraZeneca's annual revenue in 2024, and the company had been prioritising the market – the world's largest, worth US$635 billion – before Trump's return to office.
The move to scale up its US footprint is the latest by a drugmaker as Trump threatens to impose import tariffs on the industry and seeks to boost domestic manufacturing. The sector has historically been spared from trade disputes.
Trump has called on pharma companies to make more of the medicines they sell in the US within the country, rather than importing active ingredients or finished medicines.
He is also pushing for prices in the US to fall to what other countries pay.
CEO Pascal Soriot announced the plans in Washington, saying he believes that drug prices need to rise elsewhere and "equalise" with other countries effectively contributing more to research and development costs.
"The United States cannot build or carry the cost of R&D for the entire world," he said.
US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick's department is leading a probe into pharmaceutical imports that could pave the way for new tariffs.
"For decades Americans have been reliant on foreign supply of key pharmaceutical products. President Trump and our nation's new tariff policies are focused on ending this structural weakness," said Lutnick in a statement issued by AstraZeneca.
While Trump has repeatedly threatened tariffs on the sector, he signalled earlier this month that companies would be given a year to 18 months to "get their act together" before any levies take effect.
The company said that the timing and location of the announcement was linked to the US policy environment, though some of the spending would have occurred regardless so that the infrastructure for future medicines was in place.
The pledge is in addition to the US$3.5 billion in investments the company announced in November 2024, the statement said.
Pledges
The US$50 billion pledge matches the commitment announced by Swiss rival Roche in April and follows new spending plans unveiled this year by Eli Lilly & Co, Johnson & Johnson, Novartis, and Sanofi.
Also present at the announcement was Virginia State Governor Glenn Youngkin, a vocal Trump ally who has defended the administration's tariff policies.
The new Virginia facility – the company's largest single manufacturing investment – will produce active ingredients for AstraZeneca's experimental weight-loss medicines, including its oral GLP-1 candidate and an oral PCSK9 inhibitor for cholesterol management, it said.
The company said the investment could create tens of thousands of new jobs, but declined to give specifics. It employs about 18,000 people in the US and has a global workforce of about 90,000.
In January, it scrapped plans to invest £450 million (US$607.10 million) in its vaccine manufacturing plant in northern England, citing a cut in government support.
Earlier this month, The Times reported the company was considering moving its stock market listing from London – where it is the exchange's most valuable company worth £159 billion – to the US. The company declined to comment.
Orange background

Try Our AI Features

Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:

Comments

No comments yet...

Related Articles

1st LD: U.S., EU reach trade deal: Trump, EU chief
1st LD: U.S., EU reach trade deal: Trump, EU chief

The Star

time31 minutes ago

  • The Star

1st LD: U.S., EU reach trade deal: Trump, EU chief

LONDON, July 27 (Xinhua) -- U.S. President Donald Trump and European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen claimed Sunday that they had reached a trade deal under which the United States would impose a baseline tariff of 15 percent on European Union (EU) goods. The announcement was made at a joint press briefing Sunday afternoon following trade talks at the Trump Turnberry in South Ayrshire, Scotland. Pharmaceuticals were excluded from the agreement, while existing 50 percent tariffs on EU steel and aluminium exports to the United States will remain in place. Although both leaders described the deal as a step toward restoring "trade balance" and promoting more equitable two-way commerce, the agreement allows the United States to impose a broad 15 percent tariff on EU goods while securing zero-tariff access for a range of strategic American exports. In contrast, the EU has pledged to purchase 750 billion U.S. dollars' worth of American energy and commit an additional 600 billion U.S. dollars in investments in the United States. At the press briefing, Trump claimed the agreement would enable American cars to re-enter the European market and make U.S. agricultural exports more accessible in the EU.

Epstein furor undermining public trust, Republican election hopes, two US lawmakers say
Epstein furor undermining public trust, Republican election hopes, two US lawmakers say

The Star

time2 hours ago

  • The Star

Epstein furor undermining public trust, Republican election hopes, two US lawmakers say

WASHINGTON (Reuters) -The uproar over disgraced financier and sex offender Jeffrey Epstein could undermine public trust in the Trump administration, as well as Republican hopes of retaining control of Congress in the 2026 midterm elections, two U.S. lawmakers said on Sunday. Republican Representative Thomas Massie and Democratic Representative Ro Khanna, who want the House of Representatives to vote on their bipartisan resolution requiring full release of the government's Epstein files, said the lack of transparency is reinforcing public perceptions that the rich and powerful live beyond the reach of the judicial system. "This is going to hurt Republicans in the midterms. The voters will be apathetic if we don't hold the rich and powerful accountable," Massie, a hardline conservative from Kentucky, told NBC's "Meet the Press" program. Republicans hope to add to their current 219-212 House majority -- with four seats currently vacant -- and 53-47 Senate majority in November 2026, although the U.S. political cycle traditionally punishes the party of the sitting president during midterm elections. Khanna said Attorney General Pam Bondi triggered "a crisis of trust" by saying there was no list of Epstein clients after previously implying that one existed. The change in position unleashed a tsunami of calls for her resignation from Trump's MAGA base. "This is about trust in government," the California Democrat told "Meet the Press." "This is about being a reform agent of transparency." President Donald Trump, who is playing golf and holding bilateral trade talks in Scotland, has been frustrated by continued questions about his administration's handling of investigative files related to Epstein's criminal charges and 2019 death by suicide in prison. Massie and Khanna believe they can win enough support from fellow lawmakers to force a vote on their resolution when Congress returns from its summer recess in September. But they face opposition from Republican leaders including House Speaker Mike Johnson, who sent lawmakers home a day early to stymie Democratic efforts to force a vote before the break. Johnson, who also appeared on NBC's "Meet the Press," said he favors a non-binding alternative resolution that calls for release of "credible" evidence, but which he said would better protect victims including minors. "The Massie and Khanna discharge petition is reckless in the way that it is drafted and presented," Johnson said. "It does not adequately include those protections." Massie dismissed Johnson's claim as "a straw man" excuse. "Ro and I carefully crafted this legislation so that the victims' names will be redacted," he said. "They're hiding behind that." Trump, who weathered two impeachments and a federal probe into contacts between his 2016 campaign and Russia during his first presidential term, has tried and failed so far to distract attention from the Epstein controversy six months into his second term. On Saturday, Trump repeated his claims without evidence that 2024 Democratic presidential nominee Kamala Harris and other Democrats should be prosecuted over payment for endorsements from celebrities including Oprah Winfrey, Beyonce and the Reverend Al Sharpton. "Kamala, and all of those that received Endorsement money, BROKE THE LAW. They should all be prosecuted!" Trump said on social media. Last week he accused former President Barack Obama of "treason" over how the Obama administration treated intelligence about Russian interference in U.S. elections nine years ago, drawing a rebuke from an Obama spokesperson. Republican Senator Lindsey Graham, a staunch Trump ally, said on Sunday that Tulsi Gabbard, Trump's director of national intelligence, had found new information that investigators initially discovered no evidence of Russian election interference but changed their position after Obama told them to keep looking. "I'm not alleging he committed treason, but I am saying it bothers me," Graham told "Meet the Press." "The best way to handle this is if there is evidence of a crime being committed, or suspected evidence of a crime being committed, create a special counsel to look at it," Graham added. Democratic Representative Jason Crow dismissed Gabbard's claims, telling the "Fox News Sunday" program that the national intelligence director had turned herself into "a weapon of mass distraction." The Department of Justice has said it is forming a strike force to assess Gabbard's claims. (Reporting by David MorganEditing by Colleen Jenkins and Leslie Adler)

Trump says US will work with Thailand and Cambodia, adds both 'want to settle'
Trump says US will work with Thailand and Cambodia, adds both 'want to settle'

The Star

time4 hours ago

  • The Star

Trump says US will work with Thailand and Cambodia, adds both 'want to settle'

A view of broken windows at a damaged hospital, caused by Cambodia's shelling in Sisaket province, as Cambodia and Thailand each said the other had launched artillery attacks across contested border areas early on Sunday, hours after U.S. President Donald Trump said the leaders of both countries had agreed to work on a ceasefire, Thailand, July 27, 2025. REUTERS/Athit Perawongmetha TURNBERRY, Scotland (Reuters) -U.S. President Donald Trump said on Sunday he believed both Thailand and Cambodia wanted to settle their differences after he told the leaders of both countries that he would not conclude trade deals with them unless they ended their fighting. "I spoke to both of the prime ministers, and I think by the time I got off, I think they want to settle now," Trump told reporters at the start of a meeting with European Commission President Ursula von der Leyen in Turnbery, Scotland. Trump said he believed Thai and Cambodian officials were due to meet in coming days. (Reporting by Andrew Gray; Writing by Andrea Shalal; Editing by Will Dunham)

DOWNLOAD THE APP

Get Started Now: Download the App

Ready to dive into a world of global content with local flavor? Download Daily8 app today from your preferred app store and start exploring.
app-storeplay-store