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The value of Ireland’s exports to the United States jumped by more than 200% in February from a year earlier, driven by medical and pharmaceutical products, according to the country’s statistics office.
Overall exports to the U.S. increased by €8.75 billion ($9.9 billion) to €12.9 billion, the agency said Tuesday. Chemicals and related goods, which include medical and pharmaceutical items, make up 91% of that total.
It was the second straight sizable increase after an 81% jump in January, suggesting that U.S. drug makers with Irish manufacturing hubs could be stockpiling products ahead of any announcements of U.S. tariffs on the sector. It’s also a sign of how President Donald Trump’s threats of import taxes are disrupting trade flows.
Multinationals like Indianapolis-based Eli Lilly and Co. and Pfizer Inc. have invested billions in developing complex global supply chains, with Europe a key piece of the puzzle. Lilly has two major manufacturing sites in Ireland.
The Trump administration pressed ahead Monday with plans to impose tariffs on semiconductor and pharmaceutical imports by initiating trade probes led by the Commerce Department.
The U.S. president has singled out the U.S.’s goods trade imbalance with Ireland as a problem he wants to rectify with tariffs.
Global reach
Ireland has the second-largest trade surplus with the U.S. among EU nations and its exports to America hit a record €72.6 billion in 2024, up 34% from the previous year. Pharma accounts for a significant share of that and Trump wants some of that production to move to the U.S.
Ireland has been a particular beneficiary of U.S. companies’ efforts to outsource parts of the pharmaceutical production chain, thanks to its relatively low tax rates, skilled workforce and willingness to invest in infrastructure and research and development.
A spokesperson for the Irish finance ministry said that the imposition of sector-specific tariffs during the current 90-day pause in separate, so-called reciprocal tariffs with the EU would be counterproductive.
“The situation with pharma is more complex than it is often presented,” Ireland’s trade minister Simon Harris told reporters Tuesday. “About 80% of what US pharma companies export back to the U.S. from Ireland is not the finished product, it goes into American factories, it creates jobs for American workers.”
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“About 80% of what US pharma companies export back to the U.S. from Ireland is not the finished product, it goes into American factories, it creates jobs for American workers.”
Sadly, detailed and thoughtful analysis beyond “they sell us more than we sell them” is beyond the grasp of the president and his advisors.
Also, it’s important to make a distinction and understand the difference between a deficit and a subsidy.
Making distinctions and discerning differences is another major weakness in the White House’s repertoire.