British-based drug maker AstraZeneca has announced plans to invest $50 billion in the United States over the next five years amid the looming threat of President Donald Trump’s trade tariffs.

The Cambridge-headquartered firm said on Tuesday that the investment will fund a new “state-of-the-art” manufacturing facility in Virginia set to be its largest single manufacturing investment in the world.

It will also expand research and development and cell therapy manufacturing in Maryland, Massachusetts, California, Indiana, and Texas.

The announcement marks the latest by a global pharmaceutical giant to expand its U.S. footprint amid Mr Trump’s threat to impose up to 20 per cent tariffs on drug imports to boost manufacturing and lower costs.

AstraZeneca said the mammoth investment will create tens of thousands of jobs across the U.S., “powering growth and delivering next-generation medicines for patients in America and worldwide.”

The Anglo-Swedish group, which is listed on the FTSE 100, said the investment will also help it towards the group’s target of reaching 80 billion dollars in revenues by 2030.

It added that half of this is expected to come from the U.S.

Pascal Soriot, chief executive of AstraZeneca, said: “Today’s announcement underpins our belief in America’s innovation in biopharmaceuticals and our commitment to the millions of patients who need our medicines in America and globally.”

In spite of being headquartered in the United Kingdom, the U.S. is AstraZeneca’s largest market, where it employs more than 18,000 staff and makes 42 per cent of total group sales.

It already has 19 R&D, manufacturing and commercial sites across the country.

The new factory planned for Virginia will produce drug substances for the company’s weight management and metabolic portfolio, it said.

Howard Lutnick, U.S. secretary of commerce, said, “For decades Americans have been reliant on foreign supply of key pharmaceutical products.

“President Trump and our nation’s new tariff policies are focused on ending this structural weakness.

“We are proud that AstraZeneca has made the decision to bring substantial pharmaceutical production to our shores,” Mr Lutnick said.

(dpa/NAN)