UPDATE 2-Switzerland's Roche flags U.S. plans after Trump pharma tariff announcement

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Trump announces tariffs on pharma firms not building in U.S.

Roche and Novartis have pledged major investments in U.S.

Industry source suggests Swiss giants unlikely to be affected

Shares in Roche, Novartis little moved by announcement

Recasts, adds share price reaction, government response

By Paul Arnold

ZURICH, Sept 26 (Reuters) - Switzerland's Roche ROG.S on Friday underlined that one of its U.S. units recently broke ground on a new facility after President Donald Trump announced new pharmaceutical tariffs that were not due to apply to companies building U.S. plants.

Trump said on Thursday the United States will impose a 100% tariff on imports of branded or patented pharmaceutical products from October 1, unless a given pharmaceutical company is building a manufacturing plant in the U.S.

A Roche spokesperson pointed to the August 25 announcement about its Genentech unit's plans for a facility in Holly Springs, North Carolina, as well as Roche's $50 billion pledge to invest in U.S. manufacturing and research and development.

Roche and Novartis NOVN.S are Switzerland's two biggest pharmaceutical firms with major U.S. production operations.

Novartis, which also made a large U.S. investment pledge earlier this year, did not immediately reply to a request for comment.

An industry source estimated that, based on the initial U.S. indications, the tariffs as set out by Trump on Thursday would probably not apply to the two Swiss companies.

Investors appeared to shrug off the news with shares in both Roche and Novartis trading slightly up early on Friday.

The Swiss government said the relevant departments are analysing the potential impact of Trump's pharmaceutical tariff measures but that it did not have details of them.


(Reporting by Paul Arnold and Dave Graham, editing by Friederike Heine and Thomas Seythal)

((dave.graham@thomsonreuters.com; Reuters Messaging: dave.graham.thomsonreuters.com@reuters.net))

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