Pharma tariffs may go as high as 250%, says Trump

US President Donald Trump said Tuesday that upcoming tariffs on imported pharmaceuticals could go as high as 250 percent -- after starting at a lower level -- adding he plans to unveil fresh duties on foreign semiconductors.

"We'll be putting (an) initially small tariff on pharmaceuticals, but in one year, one-and-a-half years, maximum, it's going to go to 150 percent and then it's going to go to 250 percent because we want pharmaceuticals made in our country," Trump said in an interview on CNBC.

He did not say what the initial tariff rate on pharmaceuticals would be.


Trump said he would also announce tariffs on semiconductors and chips in the "next week or so" without elaborating.

The US president has threatened debilitating tariffs on the drug industry in an effort to force manufacturing back into the US. Trump recently demanded major suppliers of medicines drastically cut costs or face additional, unspecified penalties.