General views of Dublin port can be seen on April 12, 2025 (Charles McQuillan/Getty Images)

Pharma imports surged this year as drugmakers grapple with tariff threats

Drugmakers said tax cuts are better than tariffs for encouraging domestic manufacturing. They’re moving production to the US anyway.

J. Edward Moreno

5/6/25 1:22PM

The US imported $20 billion more pharmaceutical products in the first three months of 2025 than it did during the same period last year as drugmakers grapple with the unprecedented threat of import taxes on medicines made abroad.

President Trump said Monday that tariffs on pharmaceuticals will be unveiled in the next two weeks, the latest development in a string of threats to tariff the industry. Pharmaceuticals are typically excluded from tariffs under a World Trade Organization agreement that the US signed in 1994.

Drugmakers were fairly unified in their messaging to Wall Street this earnings season, emphasizing that tax cuts are better than tariffs while touting existing and planned domestic manufacturing. Data released from the Commerce Department on Tuesday suggests they’re likely front-running potential tariffs.

In the first quarter of 2025, $68.7 billion in pharmaceutical products were imported compared to $48.7 billion in the same quarter period last year. That data only goes up to March, meaning it doesn’t include the frenzy of threats and mixed messaging fired by Trump since April 2.

David Ricks, CEO of Eli Lilly, told analysts on May 1 the company is behind the “US government’s goals to increase domestic investment.” Like many drugmakers, it manufactures many of its products in Ireland, including its blockbuster weight-loss drug Zepbound, but has announced additional US investment this year.

“However, we don’t believe tariffs are the right mechanism,” Ricks added. He said future tariffs potentially “would have a negative effect on Lilly and for our industry.”

Johnson & Johnson CEO Joaquin Duato said tax cuts would be more enticing than import taxes, a sentiment shared in much of Corporate America. One reason drugmakers are concentrated in Ireland is because of its low corporate tax rate.

“If what you want is to build manufacturing capacity in the US, both in med tech and in pharmaceuticals, the most effective answer is not tariffs but tax policy,” he told analysts on April 15. Amgen CFO Peter H. Griffith said essentially the exact same thing on a May 1 earnings call: “To build on the manufacturing base in the US, we agree with our peers, but the most effective answer is not tariffs, but tax policy.”

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla appeared to suggest the industry might be able to negotiate a way out.

“Right now [we’re] focusing more on the fact that we should not have tariffs,” Bourla told analysts on April 21. “And only if we have, we should try to implement measures.”

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Electronic Arts launches a platform to put more ads in its games

Video game publishing giant EA launched a new platform on Monday designed to make the process of selling immersive ad space in its popular games easier.

The company says the platform, called EA Advertising, allows brands to “integrate directly into gameplay through dynamic, real-time placements, from stadium signage to custom in-game content.”

More so than other studios, EA has incorporated advertising into its most popular titles. As Kotaku points out, the company’s ad efforts stretch as far back as 2006. Several of its sports franchises already feature partnerships with brands like Visa, Lowe’s, Red Bull, and PepsiCo.

In-game advertising hasn’t exactly been embraced by fans, but industry experts expect it to ramp up as companies seek more revenue to offset higher games budgets and surging memory costs. EA rival Take-Two has taken a different approach, with CEO Strauss Zelnick recently saying the company was “not at risk of doing brand partnerships” in the forthcoming “Grand Theft Auto VI,” and that ads in full-price games seems “unfair.”

The $55 billion deal to take EA private, led by Saudi Arabia’s Public Investment Fund, is set to close at the end of this month. Being the largest leveraged buyout in history, EA will likely look for more ways to boost revenue to cover interest payments.

Electronic Arts Makes Push for Ad Dollars Tied to Sports

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JM Smucker says it sold $1 billion worth of Uncrustables in FY2026

After years of booming sandwich sales, JM Smucker has finally earned a billion-dollar crust.

On Tuesday, the company reported results for fiscal year 2026, highlighting better-than-expected profits driven by higher prices for coffee and sweet baked goods. However, at another point on the earnings call, CEO Mark Smucker pointed to one particularly jammy figure: in line with previous forecasts, the company sold $1 billion worth of its (almost always) crustless sandwiches, Uncrustables, in the last year alone.

Max Knoblauch6/8/26

Paramount reportedly offers concessions to resolve multistate antitrust investigation

Paramount has reportedly offered up some concessions in an effort to prevent an antitrust lawsuit by California and about 10 other states, according to Bloomberg reporting on Monday.

Reuters first reported on the potential suit from a group of unnamed states last week, which could throw a wrench in Paramount’s plans to buy rival Warner Bros. Discovery in a Hollywood megamerger.

The list of concessions is unknown, though Bloomberg previously reported that Paramount is open to divesting some of its kids TV assets to appease EU regulators.

Late last month, reports said US regulators appeared likely to approve the $110 billion merger, following a meeting between Paramount CEO David Ellison and DOJ antitrust staffers.

Paramount Offers Concessions to Head Off State Antitrust Lawsuit

The list of concessions is unknown, though Bloomberg previously reported that Paramount is open to divesting some of its kids TV assets to appease EU regulators.

Late last month, reports said US regulators appeared likely to approve the $110 billion merger, following a meeting between Paramount CEO David Ellison and DOJ antitrust staffers.

$98B ⛽

Max Knoblauch6/8/26

The IATA released its latest financial outlook for the airline industry over the weekend, forecasting a $98 billion jump in the sector’s collective fuel bill. The world’s largest trade group representing airlines expects the oil spike to halve profits by 49% from last year to $23 billion.

The group also expects profit margins to halve year over year, falling from 2025’s 4.2% to 2%. Still, revenue is expected to climb to $1.17 trillion from $1.07 trillion.

A surge in the cost of jet fuel has rocked US and global airlines this year, leading Delta Air Lines, United Airlines, American Airlines, Southwest Airlines, JetBlue, and others to raise fares and ancillary charges like bag fees. Low-cost carriers, which operate on smaller margins, have been squeezed the hardest, resulting in Spirit’s shutdown.

“It’s a tough year for all airlines, especially those whose balance sheets had not yet recovered from COVID. And, of course, for those operating in the Gulf,” said IATA Director General Willie Walsh, who added that demand is holding up and about half of passengers expect to spend more on travel this year. “That bodes well for a strong northern summer peak season. The big unknown is how long travelers and shippers can tolerate the higher costs of connectivity.”

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