Getinge says tariffs will not change established supply chains

(Reuters) -Swedish medical equipment maker Getinge said U.S. tariffs would not undo decades of global supply chains, after it reported quarterly core earnings just below market expectations on Tuesday.

Shares of the company, whose products include ventilators and equipment for operating rooms, were down nearly 7% by 1135 GMT.

U.S. President Donald Trump's import duties will ultimately affect hospitals and patients the most, as tariffs distort competition and lead to higher costs, Getinge said in a statement.

"Supply chains have been globally integrated for decades. Trying to dismantle that because tariffs change on a weekly basis — it's not realistic in a regulated industry," CEO Mattias Perjos told Reuters in an interview.

Perjos added there was "a bit of naivety" around the idea that just having final assembly or final manufacturing in a country solves the issue, as companies would still depend on materials and components from other parts of the world.

Getinge makes more than a third of its sales in the United States, its biggest market, and Perjos said it would continue to invest there.

The company produces slightly over 60% of what it sells in the U.S. locally. The rest of the products for the market are made in and imported from Europe and Turkey, with only limited component supplies from China.

The maker of products for surgery, intensive care and sterilisation reaffirmed its 2025 guidance for organic sales growth of between 2% and 5%, and said price adjustment could be one of the tools to help it cope with a potential tariff impact.

Its adjusted earnings before interest, taxes and amortisation (EBITA) rose 19% to 1.00 billion Swedish crowns ($105.45 million) in the first quarter. Analysts were expecting 1.01 billion crowns on average, a company-provided poll showed.

($1 = 9.4833 Swedish crowns)

(Reporting by Marta Frąckowiak in Gdansk; Editing by Milla Nissi)