Computers and phones are exempted from retaliatory tariffs, like the 125% tariff imposed on Chinese imports, by the government of US President Donald Trump. Late Friday night, US Customs and Border Patrol released a notice saying the goods would be exempt from Trump's 10% global tariff on most nations and China's significantly higher import duty.
The shift follows US IT firms raising alarms that the price of goods, many of which are made in China, will rise.Exemptions are also granted to other electronic equipment and parts, including semiconductors, solar cells, and memory cards.iPhone and other electronic goods prices in the United States would have risen threefold if tariff costs were passed on to customers, according to some estimates.
Apple, along with other smartphone giants such as Samsung, has in recent years tried to diversify its supply chains to limit dependence on China. India and Vietnam have emerged as the leading contenders for additional production centers. As tariffs came into play, Apple allegedly moved to speed up and ramp up its production of India-assembled smartphones in recent days. Trump had set in motion a series of steep tariffs on nations across the globe, which were to take effect this week.
But he suddenly reversed himself on Wednesday, announcing that he would impose a 90-day suspension on all countries hit by the higher US tariffs, except China, whose tariffs he raised to 145%. Trump asserted the Chinese tariff increase was in response to the country's willingness to retaliate with its own 84% tariff on American imports.
In a last-minute change of strategy, Trump announced that all nations that had not retaliated against US tariffs would be given a reprieve - and would only pay a 10% blanket US tariff until July.T rump asserts his import levies will correct unfairness in the world economic system and bring back jobs and manufacturers to America.
