Tech giants flee China as Trump intensifies tariff war
We cannot rely on electronics produced in China, and companies such as Apple and NVIDIA are rushing to move production to the USA, stated White House spokeswoman Karoline Leavitt on Saturday, referring to the exemption of electronics produced in the PRC from higher tariffs.
As Leavitt reminded in a statement quoted by Reuters, President Donald Trump has clearly stated that the USA cannot rely on China to produce critical technologies such as semiconductors, chips, smartphones, and laptops.
She added that although these very products were exempted from the 125% tariff imposed on China on Friday, companies like Apple and NVIDIA, which largely produce their goods in the PRC, are "rushing" to move production to the United States.
In February, Apple announced it would invest 500 billion in the USA over the next four years. However, this announcement did not indicate that the corporation planned to move factories producing iPhones and other devices from the PRC to the United States. As part of the investment, the corporation will build an "advanced manufacturing facility" in Houston, which will produce servers for AI, conduct training for the production process, and increase spending on research and development in the USA.
According to a representative of the US administration quoted by Reuters, despite excluding electronics from the 125% tariffs on China and the 10% tariff for the rest of the world, President Trump has still not abandoned the intention to impose additional sectoral tariffs on semiconductors. Trump announced them multiple times.
He also threatened the largest chip manufacturer, Taiwan's TSMC, with a 100% tax if it does not open plants in the USA. TSMC began building factories in Arizona during Joe Biden's presidency and announced new projects in the same location after Trump's return to power.
Exemption of electronics from tariffs
On Friday evening, the CBP customs service unexpectedly announced the exemption of around 20 articles of electronics and technology produced outside the United States, including smartphones, computers, semiconductors, solar panels, and LCD screens. In terms of value, these constitute the most significant part of goods imported to the USA from China. According to some forecasts, smartphone prices such as the iPhone could rise by over 50% if the tariffs were maintained.
The device decision was made a few days after President Trump suspended previously announced tariffs for most countries for 90 days and raised tariffs on goods from China to 145%.
At the same time, in recent days, Trump signalled that he wants to reach a trade agreement with China, although he noted that Beijing must take the first step.
