President Donald Trump has launched another wave of tariffs, unveiling a 100% duty on branded pharmaceutical products, a 25% tariff on heavy-duty trucks, and new charges on furniture and household imports such as kitchen cabinets and upholstered goods. The tariffs take effect October 1, marking one of the most aggressive trade measures of his second term.
Trump justified the move on Truth Social, blaming foreign “flooding” of goods for hurting U.S. industries. “This will bring the furniture business back,” he declared, highlighting job losses in states like North Carolina, South Carolina, and Michigan.
Markets reacted swiftly. Asian pharma stocks tumbled, with CSL in Australia plunging to a six-year low, Japan’s Sumitomo Pharma losing 5%, and Hong Kong’s biotech index falling 2.5%. Trump warned that drugmakers will face tariffs unless they have started building manufacturing plants in the U.S.
The move comes amid a pending Supreme Court case questioning the legality of previous global tariffs. By anchoring new levies under national security grounds, the Trump administration hopes to shield them from legal challenges.
Business groups, however, are alarmed. The U.S. Chamber of Commerce said new truck tariffs could hit allies like Mexico and Canada, who supply the bulk of imports. Mexico, Washington’s top truck supplier, emphasized that half the value of its exported trucks already consists of U.S.-made parts.
Despite mounting concerns over inflation and trade tensions, Trump remains firm: tariffs, he insists, are both a revenue source and a foreign policy weapon, with Washington expecting to collect $300 billion in duties by year’s end.