Swiss Luxury Watches Reeling: Trump’s Tariff Bomb Halves Exports to U.S.
by Kim Seungwook
Published 22 Oct.2025 09:03(KST)
Trump Imposes 39% Reciprocal Tariff on Switzerland
Swiss Watch Exports Plunge 55.6% in September, 23.9% in August
Overall Exports Down Only 3.1% as Shipments to UK, Hong Kong, and China Rise
It has been reported that Swiss watch exports to the United States have been cut in half after U.S. President Donald Trump imposed extremely high tariffs on Switzerland. According to Bloomberg News, cited by Yonhap News on the 21st (local time), the Swiss Watch Industry Association stated that due to the 39% reciprocal tariff imposed by the United States, Swiss watch exports to the U.S. last month amounted to 157.7 million Swiss francs (approximately 284 billion won), marking a sharp 55.6% drop compared to September last year. In August, exports had already decreased by 23.9% year-on-year.
The United States is Switzerland’s second-largest export market after the European Union. However, excluding the United States, exports to other regions such as the United Kingdom (up 15.2%), Hong Kong (up 20.6%), and China (up 17.8%) rose significantly, resulting in only a 3.1% decrease in Switzerland’s total exports last month.
Swiss exports to the United States have been on a roller coaster ride due to President Trump’s tariff policies. The surge in advance orders is believed to be a result of President Trump announcing plans to impose tariffs on pharmaceutical products, which had previously been exempt from reciprocal tariffs.
President Trump initially announced a 100% tariff on imported pharmaceuticals starting this month, but later postponed the measure, citing ongoing negotiations with pharmaceutical companies. However, major Swiss pharmaceutical companies such as Novartis and Roche are expected to avoid the tariff shock, as they already operate manufacturing facilities in the U.S. or plan to establish new ones. Roche has pledged to invest 50 billion dollars (70 trillion won) in the United States, while Novartis has committed to investing 23 billion dollars (32 trillion won).
In August, the U.S. government imposed a 39% reciprocal tariff on Swiss imports. This represented an 8 percentage point increase from the initial 31% announced in April. Although negotiations with the U.S. government have continued since then, there has been little progress for over two months. Swiss President Karin Keller-Sutter was criticized for a "diplomatic disaster" after failing to reach an agreement with President Trump in a phone negotiation just before the tariff rate was announced. She subsequently delegated the tariff negotiations to Economy Minister Guy Parmelin. Bloomberg also projected that the high tariffs could reduce Switzerland’s gross domestic product (GDP) by up to 1%.
Pharmaceutical production and research and development are particularly crucial industries, accounting for about 10% of Switzerland’s GDP. In 2023, pharmaceuticals, vitamins, and diagnostic tools made up 57% of Switzerland’s exports to the United States.
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