TOKYO (March 17): Swiss pharmaceutical giant Novartis will watch "very carefully" how the reciprocal tariff policy proposed by the US unfolds in early April, chief executive Vas Narasimhan said on Monday.

US President Donald Trump last month flagged potential import duties of about 25% on pharmaceuticals as part of measures affecting a range of industries, including semiconductors and automobiles, as he seeks to reshape global trade.

"The real key is to see what are the policies that are actually implemented versus what's being said in the rhetoric," Narasimhan told reporters at a briefing in Tokyo. "And then we're just going to have to respond appropriately."

Trump said on Monday he had no intention of creating exemptions from steel and aluminium tariffs and said he will impose reciprocal and sectoral tariffs on April 2.

The US president has previously announced tariffs on trade partners only to subsequently suspend them or allow exceptions.

Narasimhan was in Japan to announce plans to set up a research hub employing about 50 people to expand Novartis' clinical trials in the East Asian country.

That would follow a US$100 million investment in its Sasayama facility in western Japan, announced in 2024, to grow production of radiopharmaceuticals — a form of targeted nuclear medicine used to treat multiple types of cancer.

Last year, Novartis agreed to buy US-based Mariana Oncology for US$1 billion upfront to expand its portfolio of the drugs, which currently include prostate cancer treatment Pluvicto and Lutathera used for a rare group of gastrointestinal tumours.

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