Raphael Stevens

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla on Tuesday said uncertainty around President Donald Trump’s planned pharmaceutical tariffs is deterring the company from further investing in U.S. manufacturing and research and development. 
It comes as drugmakers brace for Trump’s levies on pharmaceuticals imported into the U.S. – his administration’s bid to boost manufacturing in the country. 
Pfizer said it expects $150 million in costs from Trump’s existing tariffs this year. 

Albert Bourla, chairman and CEO of Pfizer, speaks at The Wall Street Journal’s Future of Everything Festival in New York City, U.S., May 22, 2024. 
Andrew Kelly | Reuters

Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla on Tuesday said uncertainty around President Donald Trump’s planned pharmaceutical tariffs is deterring the company from further investing in U.S. manufacturing and research and development. 
Bourla’s remarks on the company’s first-quarter earnings call came in response to a question about what Pfizer wants to see from tariff negotiations that would push the company to increase investments in the U.S. It comes as drugmakers brace for Trump’s levies on pharmaceuticals imported into the country – his administration’s bid to boost domestic manufacturing.

“If I know that there will not be tariffs … then there are tremendous investments that can happen in this country, both in R&D and manufacturing,” Bourla said on the call, adding that the company is also hoping for “certainty.”
“In periods of uncertainty, everybody is controlling their cost as we are doing, and then is very frugal with their investment, as we are doing, so that we are prepared for remit. So that’s what I want to see,” Bourla said.
Bourla noted the tax environment, which had previously pushed manufacturing abroad, has “significantly changed now” with the establishment of a global minimum tax of around 15%. He said that shift hasn’t necessarily made the U.S. more attractive, saying “it’s not as good” to invest here without additional incentives or clarity around tariffs.
“Now [Trump] I’m sure — and I know because I talked to him — that he would like to see even a reduction in the current tax regime particularly for locally produced goods,” Bourla said, adding a further decrease would be would be a strong incentive for manufacturing in the U.S.
Unlike other companies grappling with evolving trade policy, Pfizer did not revise its full-year outlook on Tuesday. However, the company noted in its earnings release that the guidance “does not currently include any potential impact related to future tariffs and trade policy changes, which we are unable to predict at this time.”

But on the earnings call on Tuesday, Pfizer executives said the guidance does reflect $150 million in costs from Trump’s existing tariffs.
“Included in our guidance that we didn’t really speak about is there are some tariffs in place today,” Pfizer CFO Dave Denton said on the call.
“We are contemplating that within our guidance range and we continue to again trend to the top end of our guidance range even with those costs to be incurred this year,” he said. More

Novo Nordisk said it will offer its weight loss drug Wegovy through telehealth providers Hims & Hers Health, Ro and Life MD. 
The Danish drugmaker is racing to capture more patients now that many compounding pharmacies are legally restricted from making cheaper, unapproved versions of Wegovy, with rare exceptions.
Patients will be able to access Novo Nordisk’s new direct-to-consumer online pharmacy, NovoCare, directly through the telehealth providers.

The “Wegovy” brand slimming syringe is sold in the Achat pharmacy in Mitte. The “Wegovy” slimming syringe has been available in Germany for a year.
Jens Kalaene | Picture Alliance | Getty Images

Novo Nordisk on Tuesday said it will offer its weight loss drug Wegovy through telehealth providers Hims & Hers Health, Ro and Life MD to expand access to the blockbuster treatment now that it is no longer in short supply in the U.S. 
Shares of Hims & Hers soared 30% in premarket trading Tuesday, while Novo Nordisk’s stock rose 3%.

The Danish drugmaker is racing to capture more patients now that many compounding pharmacies are legally restricted from making cheaper, unapproved versions of Wegovy, with rare exceptions. Patients flocked to those compounded versions while Wegovy was in shortage due to skyrocketing demand. 
“We felt it was really important to work hard to establish a collaboration with telehealth companies so that there could be access to Wegovy as the compounding is winding down,” Dave Moore, executive vice president of U.S. operations at Novo Nordisk, told CNBC. 
“We’re really pleased about the level of interest to access branded Wegovy and to start to sort of catch people as they come off of compounded medicine,” he said. 

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Moore added that the new partnerships make the experience “seamless” for patients since it allows them to access Wegovy straight from their telehealth providers, which “makes it very easy” for them to get the drug shipped directly to their homes. 
Patients will be able to access Novo Nordisk’s new direct-to-consumer online pharmacy, NovoCare, directly through the telehealth providers. 

That pharmacy offers Wegovy for $499 in cash per month – roughly half its usual monthly list price  – for patients without insurance coverage for the weekly injection. 
Each telehealth company’s price may be higher because they likely include additional services, a Novo Nordisk spokesperson told CNBC. 

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Novo Nordisk one year stock chart

Hims & Hers said it will begin offering all dose sizes of Wegovy along with access to 24/7 care, nutritional guidance and ongoing clinical support this week, starting at $599 per month to eligible cash-paying patients with a prescription. 
The medication will cost Hims & Hers customers more since it comes with added access to care, the company’s CEO, Andrew Dudum, told CNBC in an interview. He said he thinks the company’s partnership with Novo Nordisk will serve as a case study for how patients get access to and get prices for “great medicine” and other forms of treatment. 
Ro opted for the lower price, announcing Tuesday it will offer access to all doses of Wegovy for $499 per month. The company provides 24/7 messaging, one-on-one coaching, educational content and more through its monthly membership called the Body Program, which does not include the cost of medication.
“Adding Novo Nordisk’s FDA-approved treatments at the best available cash price will help more patients nationwide get the obesity care they need to achieve their goals, particularly those without insurance coverage,” Ro CEO Zach Reitano said in a release.
Earlier this month, Hims & Hers announced that patients could access Eli Lilly’s weight loss medication Zepbound and diabetes drug Mounjaro, as well as the generic injection liraglutide, through its platform. But unlike the company’s collaboration with Novo Nordisk, Lilly released a statement clarifying that it has “no affiliation” with Hims & Hers.
Hims & Hers started prescribing compounded semaglutide, the active ingredient in Novo Nordisk’s diabetes drug Ozempic and Wegovy, in May of 2024. The company has largely had to stop offering the compounded medications en masse, but some consumers may still be able to access personalized doses if it’s clinically applicable, Dudum said. 
“That was one of the first things we shared with Novo is that we will always fight on behalf of what consumers we believe have the right to get,” Dudum said. “The regulation is very clear.” 
During Food and Drug Administration-declared shortages, pharmacists can legally make compounded versions of brand-name medications. They can also be produced on a case-by-case basis when it’s medically necessary for a patient, such as when they can’t swallow a pill or are allergic to a specific ingredient in a branded drug. 
But drugmakers and some health experts have pushed back against the practice, largely because the FDA does not approve compounded drugs. 
Larger, federally regulated compounding pharmacies that make copies of semaglutide in bulk without prescriptions face a legal deadline of May 22 to stop marketing and selling those versions. Smaller, state-licensed compounding pharmacies that manufacture semaglutide copycats for individual prescriptions had a deadline of April 22.  
“The spirit of this is that we stay true to what the rules are,” Moore said. “That’s the best way for us to serve patients.”
— CNBC’s Brandon Gomez and Angelica Peebles contributed to this report.

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United Airlines expanded its Polaris lounge at Chicago O’Hare International Airport and plans to open a revamped one at its hub in Newark Liberty International Airport in June.
The remodeling comes as rivals Delta and American have opened similarly dedicated lounges for long-haul, business-class customers.
Airlines have said that premium-class travel has remained resilient while bookings in the back of the plane have come up light.

United Airlines Polaris lounge in Chicago
United Airlines

United Airlines’ top-tier airport lounge reopened in Chicago on Tuesday, featuring a 50% larger space and Crate & Barrel furnishings as carriers’ battle for higher-spending customers becomes more crucial.
The 25,000-square-foot-Polaris lounge is in Terminal 1 at United’s home hub, Chicago O’Hare International Airport. It has seating for 350 passengers, six additional bathrooms, a second “speakeasy-style” bar and 50 seats for sit-down dining.

United opened its first Polaris airport lounge in 2016 along with its new long-haul, business-class cabin of the same name. The lounge is reserved for customers flying internationally in the Polaris cabin, and its debut created a two-tiered lounge system with the airline’s more common United Clubs. That tiered model was also adopted by American Airlines and last year, Delta Air Lines.

United Airlines’ “speakeasy” bar at its new Chicago Polaris Lounge.
United Airlines

Airlines have been revamping their lounges to accommodate more and more customers who qualify for entry with popular credit cards, elite frequent flyer status or just by buying more expensive tickets. Carriers have said that premium-class travel has remained resilient while bookings in the back of the plane have come up light this year.
United is also expanding its Polaris lounge at Newark Liberty International Airport in New Jersey, which will open in June, Aaron McMillan, United’s managing director of hospitality programs, told CNBC. It is also is doing some “early design work” for a possible Polaris lounge at its hub in Denver.
McMillan said the carrier did see “some some tight spots during the day where the lounge was near capacity” in Chicago last summer, though plans to grow the lounges have gone back years.
In addition to expanding its main United Club lounges, the airline has also opened grab-and-go lounges in Denver and Houston to help with overcrowding at larger facilities and to offer a product to time-pressed travelers. More

General Motors reported its first-quarter earnings before the bell Tuesday.
The automaker beat Wall Street’s expectations, but said it is reassessing its full-year guidance.
GM executives will host an earnings conference call at 8:30 a.m. ET on Thursday.

DETROIT — General Motors beat Wall Street’s first-quarter expectations but is reassessing its 2025 financial guidance and suspending any additional stock buybacks amid expected cost increases and industry uncertainty regarding Donald Trump’s ongoing auto tariffs.
Here’s how the company performed in the first quarter, compared with average estimates compiled by LSEG:

Earnings per share: $2.78 adjusted vs. $2.74 expected
Revenue: $44.02 billion vs. $43.05 billion

GM’s 2025 guidance from January, which did not take tariffs into account, included net income attributable to stockholders of $11.2 billion to $12.5 billion, or $11 to $12 in earnings per share; adjusted earnings before interest and taxes of $13.7 billion to $15.7 billion, or $11 to $12 adjusted EPS; and adjusted automotive free cash flow between $11 billion and $13 billion.
“We believe the future impacts of tariffs could be significant, so we are reassessing our guidance and look forward to sharing more when we have greater clarity,” GM CFO Paul Jacobson said during a media call. “The prior guidance can’t be relied upon, and we’ll come back to the market with clarity as soon as we have it.”
GM declined to say it was formally withdrawing or suspending the guidance, but said it was calling it unreliable until the company has additional clarity on the economic and regulatory environments.
Jacobson declined to disclose how much the tariffs, including 25% levies on imported vehicles effective April 3, have cost the Detroit automaker thus far. He also declined to discuss any new actions the company has taken to avoid additional costs until the company’s call with investors, which was moved from Tuesday to 8:30 a.m. ET on Thursday amid potential regulatory changes.
The Wall Street Journal on Monday reported that Trump is expected to soften the impact of his automotive tariffs, preventing duties on foreign-made cars from stacking on top of other tariffs such as steel and aluminum that have been imposed.

The report also says the administration will modify its tariffs on imported auto parts, allowing automakers to be reimbursed for those tariffs up to an amount equal to 3.75% of the value of a U.S.-made car for one year. The reimbursement would fall to 2.5% of the car’s value in a second year, and then be phased out altogether, according to the Journal.
Trump is scheduled to visit Michigan on Tuesday to celebrate his first 100 days back in the Oval Office.
Jacobson said the company continues to believe it may be able to offset between 30% and 50% of the North American tariffs, as previously announced, but is still assessing the situation and awaiting additional clarity.
Trump’s tariffs, including an additional 25% on aluminum and steel, and potential levies on auto parts that could take effect by May 3, have created growing uncertainty for the automotive industry. The instability has caused Wall Street analysts to downgrade many automotive stocks, including GM.
Jacobson said the Detroit automaker does not expect to make any significant changes to its manufacturing plans until there’s “more clarity” on the levies, but it has been making some “no regrets” adjustments to its North American production due to the tariffs, as well as other factors.
Those decisions have included increasing pickup truck production at a plant in Indiana, canceling downtime at a plant in Missouri and suspending production of its large electric vehicle delivery vans in Canada.
“Further decisions around capital required, or big shifts, we’re going to defer on until we have a little bit more clarity on that,” Jacobson said, adding that the tariffs could lead the company or its supply chain to conduct “pretty significant investments” in the U.S.
The company’s first-quarter results included net income attributable to stockholders of $2.78 billion and adjusted earnings before interest and taxes of $3.49 billion. That compared with results a year earlier of $43.01 billion in revenue, net income attributable to stockholders of $2.98 billion, and adjusted earnings before interest and taxes of $3.87 billion.
Despite profit margins being down compared with a year earlier, Jacobson described GM’s first-quarter results as “very strong,” noting solid fundamentals of the automaker’s business. He cited a $300 million negative impact in foreign exchange, specifically the Mexican peso, and $400 million in additional year-over-year costs that included higher labor and warranty expenses as well as depreciation and amortization.
Regarding capital spending and future stock buybacks for GM, which the company has leaned upon to prop up its share price, Jacobson said the completion of a $2 billion accelerated stock buyback program is still expected to conclude during the second quarter, but any future purchases are suspended.
“We have temporarily suspended any buyback activity until we have more clarity on what the situation might be,” Jacobson said. “As far as capital spending goes, we continue to evaluate and position where we might want to go with that, and we’ve got some flexibility in the portfolio, but to date, we haven’t made any material changes to our capital expenditure program, but we’ll continue to assess that as we get more clarity.”
In February, GM said it would initiate a $6 billion share repurchase program as the company attempts to reward investors amid slowing industry sales and profits, including the $2 billion accelerated program.
Correction: Trump is scheduled to visit Michigan on Tuesday. An earlier version misstated the day.

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