Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla said Tuesday that uncertainty surrounding President Donald Trump’s proposed pharmaceutical tariffs is discouraging the company from making additional investments in U.S. manufacturing and research, CNBC News reported April 29.
Speaking to Pfizer’s first-quarter earnings, Mr. Bourla emphasized that more clarity on trade policy would be key for the company in deciding to boost domestic investment.
“If I know that there will not be tariffs … then there are tremendous investments that can happen in this country, both in R&D and manufacturing,” Mr. Bourla told CNBC, adding that the company is hoping for more “certainty.”
He added that in times of uncertainty, companies like Pfizer become more frugal with investments and start to focus on cost control.
While Pfizer did not revise its full-year outlook, Pfizer executives said on the earnings call that the guidance reflects $150 million in costs from President Trump’s existing tariffs.
“Included in our guidance that we didn’t really speak about is there are some tariffs in place today,” Pfizer CFO Dave Denton said. “We are contemplating that within our guidance range and we continue to again trend to the top end of our guidance range even with those costs to be incurred this year.”
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