Roche is making a massive bet on the United States.
The Swiss pharmaceutical company announced that it will invest $50 billion across the United States over the next five years. The move comes as drugmakers around the world brace for possible new tariffs from the Trump administration, which recently launched a “national security” investigation into pharmaceutical imports.
Roche said the investment will create more than 12,000 jobs, including nearly 6,500 construction roles, and boost U.S. manufacturing, research, and distribution operations. The company plans to expand its existing sites in Kentucky, Indiana, New Jersey, Oregon, and California, while building new factories for gene therapy and glucose monitoring, as well as a research center in Massachusetts focused on cardiovascular and metabolic diseases.
“We are proud of our 110-year legacy in the United States which has been a key driver for jobs, innovation and the creation of intellectual property,” said Roche CEO Thomas Schinecker. “Our investments of $50 billion over the next five years will lay the foundation for our next era of innovation and growth, benefiting patients in the US and around the world.”
Roche said that once the new and upgraded sites are operational, it will export more medicines from the U.S. than it imports —a significant signal to a White House focused on reducing trade deficits.
Switzerland currently faces a 10% tariff on some goods, with that rate expected to rise to 31% when a temporary pause expires. While pharmaceuticals were initially excluded from recent U.S. tariffs, the administration has warned that sector-specific measures may be coming soon.
Roche is the latest drugmaker to announce significant U.S. investments. Novartis said earlier this month it will spend $23 billion in the U.S., while Johnson & Johnson and Eli Lilly have each committed to tens of billions more. European pharma companies are hoping the moves will prevent a wave of new trade restrictions.