U.S. President Donald Trump has excluded smartphones, computers, and various electronic devices from the 125% levies imposed on Chinese imports. As stated in a notice by the U.S. Customs and Border Patrol (CBP), the specified goods are not subject to Trump’s 10% global tariff on various countries or the higher import tax on Chinese products.
The guidance further specifies exemptions for various electronic devices and components such as semiconductors, solar panels, flat-screen TV displays, USB flash drives, and memory cards.
The exemptions offer much-needed relief to leading U.S. tech companies, such as Apple and numerous other firms, that depend on Chinese manufacturing.
The White House declared on Saturday that the exemptions were granted to allow companies sufficient time to transition production operations to the United States. The CBP guidelines indicate that 20 product categories are exempt from the 125% tariff on Chinese imports and the 10% baseline tariff on goods from other nations. However, a 20% tariff on all Chinese products continues to apply.
The Trump administration claims that the tariffs aim to create more manufacturing jobs in the United States and address a decline spanning decades. However, certain products are challenging to manufacture or source domestically, leading to higher production costs in American factories.
Semiconductors and microchips, which are predominantly outsourced to Asian factories due to cost advantages, are now exempt under the notice. The exclusion could benefit Asian chipmakers like Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), Samsung, and SK Hynix.
The United States represents a significant market for iPhones, with Apple contributing to over half of smartphone sales in the country last year, as reported by Counterpoint Research. As per the report, around 80% of iPhones destined for the U.S. market are manufactured in China, while the remaining 20% are produced in India.
In recent years, Apple, similar to Samsung, has been working to diversify its supply chains to reduce dependency on China.
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