Over 500 active in the USA How Swiss companies are preparing for Trump's tariff plans

The USA is Switzerland's most important trading partner: what do local companies think about the tariffs that Donald Trump is threatening?

Keystone-SDA

20.01.2025, 11:51

SDA

Donald Trump will be sworn in as the 47th President of the United States this Monday in Washington. He has announced a "record number" of decrees for his first day in office.

Thanks to their local presence, Swiss companies at least consider themselves well prepared for his tariff plans. The USA is Switzerland's most important trading partner in 2021, ahead of Germany. In 2023, Switzerland exported goods worth CHF 56.6 billion to the United States.

However, those who produce in the USA themselves believe they are on the safe side. According to Rahul Sahgal, Director of the Swiss-US Chamber of Commerce, more than 500 Swiss companies are active in the USA. Many of them have several subsidiaries in different states, more than 4000 in total.

Nestlé: 95 percent from US production

Of the listed Swiss companies, around 100 are present in the USA. Many produce and sell locally and would hardly be affected by the higher tariffs that Trump is threatening Europe with, according to a survey conducted by the AWP news agency.

"95 percent of what we sell in the US is produced in the US," said a spokeswoman for food manufacturer Nestlé. Sales in Zone North America, which includes the USA and Canada, amounted to 26 billion Swiss francs in 2023, accounting for just over a quarter of total sales.

The tenor is similar at construction chemicals and adhesives manufacturer Sika, which operates 50 factories on the other side of the Atlantic. "The impact is zero, as we produce everything we sell in the USA locally," said a spokesperson. The Zug-based group generated annual sales of around 2.3 billion Swiss francs in the country in 2023.

Pharma hit harder

Emmi has also long had its own production facilities in the USA. "The majority of our cheese specialties are produced locally in the US and we also export some from Switzerland," said a spokeswoman for the Lucerne-based dairy producer.

"Of the products our group sells in the US, 75 percent are manufactured locally," an ABB spokesperson also said. The energy and automation technology company generated sales of 8.3 billion Swiss francs on the other side of the Atlantic in 2023.

The pharmaceutical industry, on the other hand, is likely to be hit harder by higher US tariffs. The trade in medicines is heavily dependent on US policy, UBS economists noted in an analysis published last fall before the elections.

Overall, chemical-pharmaceutical products account for around half of Switzerland's total exports. Switzerland sends a quarter of its pharmaceutical exports to the world's largest economy.

Pharmaceutical lobby seeks a hearing in Washington

Neither the two pharmaceutical giants Novartis and Roche nor the contract manufacturer Lonza wanted to comment on the issue when asked by AWP. "Our subsidiaries on the other side of the Atlantic will continue to work with the new US government," a Roche spokeswoman said.

Quite apart from the tariffs, the industry has other concerns: During the election campaign, the new US administration promised to work towards a "radical" reduction in drug prices. And the designated Secretary of Health and Human Services, Robert Kennedy, is an avowed anti-vaccinationist and propagator of conspiracy theories.

In order to secure the status quo, there is apparently a lot of lobbying going on behind the scenes, as research by the SonntagsBlick newspaper revealed at the weekend. According to figures from the non-governmental organization Open Secrets, Swiss pharmaceutical giants are among the most active corporations in Washington.