With the global trade war still up and running, US President Donald Trump excluded electronic imports from his “Liberation Day” reciprocal tariffs in a strategic move on Friday, April 11.
This came after Trump imposed a 145% tariff on China and China fought back with a 125% tariff on the US. Now, however, the US Customs and Border Protection agency has exempted some electronic products from the tariffs.
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The “Liberation Day” reciprocal tariffs
Trump, 78, announced on April 2, a day he dubbed “Liberation Day,” that he’d impose global tariffs, in addition to “reciprocal tariffs” for countries like China and the European Union.
Afterwards, he said he’d pause the tariffs for 90 days, except for China, as he raised their tariffs to 145%.
US Customs and Border Protection agency released new updates
The US Customs and Border Protection agency has updated the list of electronics exempted from tariffs. This is good news for companies like Apple who rely on China for manufacturing 80% of its products and 90% of its iPhones.
Electronics exempt from ‘Liberation Day’ tariffs
These electronic goods exempt from “Liberation Day” tariffs include:
• smartphones
• laptops
• solar cells
• flat panel TV displays
• memory sticks
• memory cards
• semiconductors
• solid-state drives
Experts are concerned about iPhone price hike
Harry Mills, director at Oku Markets, told Sky News: “consumers can surely expect a feedthrough straight to prices.”
“Consumers eyeing an upgrade might do well to act sooner and avoid a gamble on a £300 ($392) price hike,” he added.
Wedbush deemed the tariff exclusion a solid move
Analysts at Wedbush on Saturday called the tariff exclusion, “the best news possible for tech investors,” according to CNN.
“Big Tech firms like Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft and the broader tech industry can breathe a huge sigh of relief this weekend into Monday,” Wedbush said in a statement.
The White House made a statement
“President Trump has made it clear America cannot rely on China to manufacture critical technologies such as semiconductors, chips, smartphones, and laptops,” said White House press secretary Karoline Leavitt.
That’s why the President has secured trillions of dollars in U.S. investments from the largest tech companies in the world, including Apple, (Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company), and Nvidia,” she continued, as the president urged these companies to move their production to the US.
China is approving of the move
China made a statement on Sunday, April 13, where the Ministry of Commerce dubbed the move a “small step by U.S. to correct its wrong practice of unilateral ‘reciprocal tariffs,'” as reported by Reuters.
“The bell on a tiger’s neck can only be untied by the person who tied it,” the ministry added, encouraging the US to take further steps to tone down the tariffs situation.
