Trump exempts smartphones and computers from new tariffs
Category: News & Politics
Via: hallux • one week ago • 10 commentsBy: Madeline Halpert - BBC News, New York
S E E D E D C O N T E N T
President Donald Trump's administration has exempted smartphones and computers from reciprocal tariffs, including the 125% levies imposed on Chinese imports.
US Customs and Border Patrol published a notice late on Friday explaining the goods would be excluded from Trump's 10% global tariff on most countries and the much larger Chinese import tax.
The move comes after concerns from US tech companies that the price of gadgets could skyrocket, as many of them are made in China.
The exemptions also include other electronic devices and components, including semiconductors, solar cells and memory cards.
The US is a major market for iPhones, while Apple accounted for more than half of its smartphones sales last year, according to Counterpoint Research.
It says as much as 80% of Apple's iPhones intended for US sale are made in China, with the remaining 20% made in India.
Along with fellow smartphone giants such as Samsung, Apple has been trying to diversify its supply chains to avoid over-reliance on China in recent years.
India and Vietnam emerged as frontrunners for additional manufacturing hubs.
As tariffs took effect, Apple reportedly looked to speed up and increase its production of India-produced devices in recent days.
Trump had planned a host of steep tariffs on countries around the world set to go into effect this week.
But on Wednesday, he quickly reversed course, announcing that he would implement a 90-day pause for countries hit by higher US tariffs - except China - whose tariffs he raised to 145%. Trump said the Chinese tariff increase was because of the country's readiness to retaliate with its own 84% levy on US goods.
In a dramatic change of policy, Trump said all countries that had not retaliated against US tariffs would receive a reprieve – and only face a blanket US tariff of 10% – until July.
The White House said the move was a negotiating tactic to extract more favourable trade terms from other countries.
Trump has said his import taxes will address unfairness in the global trading system, as well as bring jobs and factories back to American shores.
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Having tossed the world into an economic winter Trump like Napoleon must now retreat. The forthcoming excuses clothed in excessive praise by the hoodwinked are surely going to be head-spinning.
Trump folds quicker than a wet paper bag.
treating an amputation with a box of band-aids ...
Unlike Trump, Napoleon had the intelligence to "Let China Sleep".
America's image and trustworthiness around the rest of the world has already been permanently damaged by Trump. No one is going to trust a country being run by a clown. He will pull back on this or that insane policy, and then begin a different insane policy the next day. This will go on for four years, and by that time American exceptionalism will be a distant memory.
Do not jump to conclusions. Trump has been in office for less than 100 days. You need to give him time to let his strategy play out.
Trump knows what he is doing. You have to trust in Trump. It will all work out great. We will all be wealthier and happier.
The deadline for Microsoft killing Windows 10 is October. There are still more computers running Windows 10 than Windows 11. Microsoft's recommendation to transition to Windows 11 has been to replace computers which depends upon imports. Trump's tariffs was putting a crimp on Microsoft's business strategy of extorting consumers to purchase less capable equipment so the Microsoft can cheat consumers.
Microsoft's business stupidity has got to be a factor in the decision to exempt computers. The government is bailing out Bill Gates again.
Don't be so dramatic, it's being put out to pasture and for many reasons, a major one being hardware capabilities to deal with A-I software (a.k.a as A-One software to Trump's 'brilliant' choice for Education Secretary).
It seems that a few billionaires and some millionaires (at Apple and Microsoft) might have brought a little pressure to bear on their boy
Yep, the conversation probably went something like this: "After the millions we gave you to be PotUS, you're trying to fuck us? Just wait until November 2026 when we'll pull your teeth."