British pharmaceutical group GlaxoSmithKline PLC (GSK) plans to invest US$30 billion in the US over the next five years, it announced yesterday, as US President Donald Trump began a UK state visit.
The investments would bolster GSK’s research and development as well as production capacities in the US, the company said, as drugmakers faced pressure from Trump to invest more in the world’s biggest economy.
Trump unleashed a barrage of tariffs after his re-election last year, to force a range of industries to increase domestic production as he accused them of contributing to an “unfair” US trade deficit.
Photo: AFP
While the pharmaceutical industry has so far been spared severe tariffs, GSK and some of its rivals have personally been identified by Trump as needing to invest more in the US.
“This week’s state visit brings together two countries that have led the world in science and healthcare innovation,” GSK chief executive officer Emma Walmsley said in a statement.
Its US commitment includes a US$1.2 billion plan to build a biologics factory in Pennsylvania for developing respiratory and cancer treatments, and artificial intelligence (AI) development at its five US manufacturing sites.
GSK said it already has about 15,000 employees in the US, and its investments would create “hundreds of highly skilled jobs.”
Its announcement is the first during Trump’s visit to reveal planned investment in the US.
US technology giants on Tuesday revealed plans for multibillion-dollar investments in the UK’s AI sector.
Microsoft Corp led the way, saying it would pump US$30 billion into the UK over four years, while Google said it planned investment of nearly US$7 billion over the next two years.
Meanwhile, British firm Nscale Global Holdings Ltd has partnered with ChatGPT maker OpenAI and chip giant Nvidia Corp to establish a British version of Stargate — a large-scale AI infrastructure initiative.
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