US president Donald Trump said Tuesday that upcoming tariffs on imported pharmaceuticals could reach 250 per cent, after starting at a lower level, while adding he plans to also unveil fresh duties on foreign semiconductors.
鈥榃e鈥檒l be putting (an) initially small tariff on pharmaceuticals, but in one year, one-and-a-half years, maximum, it鈥檚 going to go to 150 per cent,鈥� Trump said in an interview on CNBC.
鈥楢nd then it鈥檚 going to go to 250 per cent because we want pharmaceuticals made in our country,鈥� he added.
In the same interview, Trump said he expects to raise the US tariff on Indian imports 鈥榲ery substantially over the next 24 hours鈥� due to the country鈥檚 purchases of Russian oil.
While Trump has taken aim at products from different countries with varying tariff rates after imposing a 10-per cent levy on almost all trading partners in April, these have excluded certain products he planned to target separately.
These sector-specific tariffs have generally come after government investigations that look into the national security concerns surrounding certain imports.
After earlier embarking on probes on imported semiconductors and pharmaceuticals, the Trump administration has signalled plans to wrap up these studies which could lead to new tariffs.
Already, Trump has slapped steep tariffs of 50 per cent on imported steel and aluminium, and also rolled out a separate but lower duty on autos and parts.
