India's first reaction to Trump's 100% tariffs on drug imports: ‘Closely monitoring’
India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA), along with the other relevant ministries and government authorities, is examining the impact of Trump's 100% tariffs on pharma imports into the United States. The Ministry will monitor developments closely.
Tariff war: India's Ministry of External Affairs (MEA) announced on Friday, 26 September 2025, that it is closely monitoring the new 100% tariff rates imposed by US President Donald Trump on all branded and patented pharmaceutical drugs effective from 1 October 2025.
The official spokesperson for the MEA said that the Ministry, along with the relevant departments and authorities, are currently monitoring the development, along with examining its impact on Indian exporters.
“We saw a notice yesterday on social media that talked about new tariffs. We've seen the report on pharma and other products, and the relevant ministry and department are closely monitoring the matter and examining its impact...” said Randhir Jaiswal, the official spokesperson for MEA on Friday.
Trump's pharma tariffs
Mint reported earlier that US President Donald Trump announced on Thursday, 25 September 2025, that the United States will impose a 100% tariff rate on imports of branded or patented pharmaceutical products from 1 October 2025 unless the companies are building a manufacturing plant in the Western nation.
In his announcement, Trump also mentioned that the pharma tariffs would not apply to companies building manufacturing plants in the United States.
“Starting October 1st, 2025, we will be imposing a 100% Tariff on any branded or patented Pharmaceutical Product, unless a Company IS BUILDING their Pharmaceutical Manufacturing Plant in America. ‘IS BUILDING’ will be defined as ‘breaking ground’ and/or ‘under construction.’ There will, therefore, be no Tariff on these Pharmaceutical Products if construction has started. Thank you for your attention to this matter!” said Trump in his post on the social media platform Truth Social.
Pharma tariffs — A risk for Indian exporters?
According to a recent news report from Al Jazeera, citing Observatory of Economic Complexity (OEC) data, the United States imports pharmaceutical products from other world nations, including packaged medicaments, vaccines, toxins and cultures, and hormones.
In 2023, the United States imported nearly $86.4 billion worth of packaged medicines, out of which 10.6% or $9.2 billion worth of the same products came from India, according to the news portal's report.
Mint reported earlier, citing experts and market analysts, that Indian exporters face a high headline risk from the Trump tariffs but a low operational risk.
In the first half of 2025, India was the largest supplier of generic drugs to the United States, with exports totalling $3.7 billion as of H12025.
According to the US Commerce Department, Generics, OTC drugs, biologics, and speciality drugs are currently excluded from the tariffs, as they fall under a separate Section 232.