Trump orders new drug fees despite Supreme Court rulings against them

US President Donald Trump ordered the imposition of new customs duties on certain medicines and the restructuring of duties on metals, confirming his adherence to his trade approach a year after igniting trade wars with most of Washington’s partners.

With his recent decisions, Trump is increasing the pressure on pharmaceutical companies to manufacture more of them in the United States, while targeting companies that officials accuse of “artificially manipulating” metal prices.

Final products that include large quantities of steel, aluminum and copper will be subject to lower customs duties of 25% on their full value, instead of calculating duties based on the quantities of metals they contain, in a move aimed at simplifying a complex system for companies.

It is not yet clear how the matter will affect prices for consumers, but a senior American official confirmed to reporters that it is unlikely that there will be any impact.

The two decisions come on the anniversary of what Trump calls “Liberation Day,” when he announced numerous customs duties on goods from dozens of economies last year, which caused a shock in the financial markets and disrupted supply chains.

Although the Supreme Court issued decisions against these global fees last February, Trump is seeking to reimpose them in other ways.

One of Trump’s decisions imposes 100% customs duties on medicines manufactured abroad, unless countries conclude trade agreements to guarantee lower duties, or companies commit to building factories in the United States.

A senior American official told reporters that large companies will have 120 days to comply with “production transfer plans” before the exorbitant fees begin to be implemented, while smaller companies will have a grace period of 180 days.

He added: “We expect that the largest share of patented medicines in the world will be manufactured in the United States.”

Companies that commit to building factories that will be completed by the end of Trump’s second presidential term will be subject to a 20% fee.

The European Union, Japan, South Korea and Switzerland will be excluded from this plan, and will instead be subject to 15% customs duties on medicines, given that they had previously concluded trade agreements with Washington.

As for Britain, it concluded an agreement allowing medicines manufactured in it to reach the United States duty-free for a period of three years as part of a broader agreement, according to what the Office of the US Trade Representative reported.