Pharmaceutical Reig Jofre warns Trump tariffs can load European market with 'opportunistic' competitors

The Catalan pharmaceutical Reig Jofre warns that the "reciprocal" tariffs announced by the US president Donald Trump could load the European market with "opportunistic" competitors who face difficulties in the United States.

The group is more worried about "uncertainty" as many companies could want to "empty stock" in the old continent. Reig Jofre is more concerned about this possibility than the tariffs' actual impact on their business, as the US only represents between 1 and 2% of their overall revenue.

CEO Ignasi Biosca said the "world's market reorganization and available stocks" could lead to "opportunistic" competition.

Biosca criticizes Spain's medicine law using this new market organization, describing it as a "dangerous" policy. The Spanish government recently passed a draft of this policy, but it has now expired, as the current global path is going the opposite way.

The draft proposes an "auction" format to "look for the best vendor each time, every six months," and pushes prices down. "For sure, the cheapest options will not come from Catalonia, nor Spain, nor Europe," he said before saying that Roig Jofre manufactures 25 considered "critical" medicines for the continent.

Biosca proposed that Catalonia could become "Europe's pharmacy" as there are 87 pharmaceutical plants, so we are the "envy" of many countries, including, probably, the US president himself.

Trump tariffs are expected to impact over 3,100 Catalan companies, based on first estimations by the Catalonia Trade & Investment agency. To battle the impact of these tariffs, the Catalan president, Salvador Illa, and his cabinet announced a €1.5 billion scheme to help affected businesses.

A few days before, Spanish PM Pedro Sánchez also announced another financial aid program worth €14.1 billion.