Roche CEO Thomas Schinecker has dismissed concerns about US tariffs.
Keystone-SDA / Georgios Kefalas
Select your language
Generated with artificial intelligence.
Listening: Roche CEO ‘relaxed’ over Trump tariff plans
Thomas Schinecker, CEO of Swiss pharma firm Roche, has dismissed fears that the company’s sales targets would be threatened by potential higher US tariffs on pharmaceutical goods.
“We are relatively relaxed because we have the entire value chain on site in the US,” he said in the TV programme CEO Talk on TeleZüri, repeating statements he had already made during the annual media conference in Basel at the end of January. He again emphasised that Roche has invested heavily in research and development in the US and also has a lot of production in the US. The Swiss pharma giant has around 25,000 employees in the USA.
Schinecker also believes that fears that Roche’s sales and profit targets could be threatened by higher US import tariffs are unfounded. “No, we already have a lot in the US. President Trump wants people or companies to invest in the US. And we are already well invested,” he explained in the CEO Talk programme.
The situation is different with the OECD minimum tax deal. Its introduction was rather problematic: “Switzerland was too quick with the OECD minimum tax. We should have waited and seen what the other countries were doing,” he said.
More
More
Roche’s big bet on big diseases
This content was published on
Swiss pharma giant Roche is the latest company to refocus its R&D investment on diseases like obesity that weigh heavily on healthcare budgets.
The CEO also sees dangers in the subsidies that many countries use as incentives for companies, which could lead certain economic sectors to leave, he suggested. “In Switzerland, we have to think about what the leading industries are for the future and how we can ensure that Switzerland is successful in these industries in the future so that the prosperity that currently exists in Switzerland is maintained.”
At the same time, as a globally active company, Roche is dependent on good relations with other countries. He therefore hopes that Switzerland and the EU will be able to finalise their newly negotiated agreement. Not only is the EU Switzerland’s largest trading partner, as an international company Roche also needs the best employees for research and development. “In this respect, access [to the EU market] and cooperation is extremely important for us.”
What is your opinion? Join the debate:
External Content
Adapted from German by DeepL/jdp
This news story has been written and carefully fact-checked by an external editorial team. At SWI swissinfo.ch we select the most relevant news for an international audience and use automatic translation tools such as DeepL to translate it into English. Providing you with automatically translated news gives us the time to write more in-depth articles.
If you want to know more about how we work, have a look here, if you want to learn more about how we use technology, click here, and if you have feedback on this news story please write to english@swissinfo.ch.
Popular Stories
More
Climate solutions
Switzerland turns train tracks into solar power plants
In Switzerland more people are being referred to electrical therapies or psychedelic-assisted psychotherapy. Are there similar approaches where you live?
Electricity reserves still needed in Switzerland in midterm
This content was published on
Switzerland's energy supply remains uncertain. Electricity reserves are still needed in the medium term, the Federal Electricity Commission (ElCom) said.
ICRC says next few days will be ‘decisive’ for aid to Gaza
This content was published on
The next few days will be absolutely decisive if the Geneva-based International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) to continue providing aid in the Gaza Strip, said its director-general Pierre Krähenbühl.
Switzerland unveils a national drought-detection system
This content was published on
Switzerland launched on Thursday a new national system for detecting drought and warning the population and authorities in advance.
Federal coffers to get CHF100 million boost from Swiss Post
This content was published on
Swiss Post will pay a dividend of CHF100 million ($121 million) to the Confederation this year, the company announced on Thursday.
Swiss Federal Railways satisfied with bodycams for transport police
This content was published on
Since the introduction of body-worn cameras, the frequency of assaults on Swiss Federal Railways transport police has fallen by 25%.
Zurich cantonal government to compensate victims of forced labour
This content was published on
Victims of past forced labour measures in canton Zurich could soon apply to receive a one-off solidarity compensation of CHF25,000 ($30,255).
Risk of a real-estate bubble in Switzerland grew in first quarter
This content was published on
The risk of a bubble in the Swiss property market increased slightly in the first three months of the year compared with the previous quarter, says UBS.
French authorities order Nestlé to remove its filtration system
This content was published on
Authorities in the south of France have served formal notice to Nestlé Waters, a subsidiary of the Swiss food giant, to "withdraw within two months" its microfiltration system for its Perrier mineral water.
Switzerland says pushbacks at border by Germany are unlawful
This content was published on
Switzerland considers Germany's planned systematic pushbacks at the border to be contrary to existing law, the department of justice has said.
Switzerland to hold referendum on introducing electronic ID
This content was published on
The Swiss are set to vote on the introduction of e-ID after the Federal Chancellery confirmed enough valid signatures were submitted by opponents of the federal law on electronic identity.
You can find an overview of ongoing debates with our journalists here . Please join us!
If you want to start a conversation about a topic raised in this article or want to report factual errors, email us at english@swissinfo.ch.