President Donald Trump’s administration is ramping up probes into U.S. semiconductor and pharmaceutical imports this week, the latest sign that Trump plans to hit the sectors with tariffs.
Monday filings with the Federal Register announced 21-day public comment periods for probes into both sets of imports. Trump’s administration has argued that tariffs are necessary in order to secure domestic production of pharmaceuticals and semiconductors for national security reasons.
“We don’t make our own pharmaceuticals, drugs and other things to get better. They’re made in other countries and you pay a number. I mean, the same package in our country compared to, like, London and other places is sometimes 10 times more, 10 times more. Something that sells for $88 in London, sells for $1,300 here, made in the same factory by the same company. And that’s over,” Trump said last week.
“We’re going to tariff our pharmaceuticals. And once we do that, they’re going to come rushing back into our country, because we’re a big market. The advantage we have over everybody, is that we’re the big market,” he added.
Trump also set his sights on semiconductors on Sunday, saying tariff levels would be announced within the week.
This is an excerpt from an article by FOX Business’ Anders Hagstrom. To read the full article, click here.
