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Trump Exempts Smartphones And Laptops From New Tariffs
Adeel

The tech industry is being granted significant tariff exemptions by the Trump administration.

President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday that he would postpone several of the tariffs that had caused market turmoil the week before. However, he maintained a 10% tariff across the board and raised tariffs on Chinese products to 125%, in addition to the pre-existing 20% tariff on goods from China.

There has been much discussion surrounding the potential effects of tariffs on the tech industry, as it heavily relies on manufacturing consumer electronics in countries like China. While one of President Trump’s goals is to revive American manufacturing, some doubt that producing iPhones entirely within the US is purely fantasy.

The debates could come to a halt by Friday evening, as U.S. Customs and Border Protection has released a list of product categories exempt from the reciprocal tariffs in Executive Order 14257. These exemptions are retroactive to April 5.

The following categories, comprising smartphones, laptops, hard drives, and semiconductor-producing machines, will all be excluded from the 125% tariff on Chinese goods as well as the universal baseline tariff. It is possible that previous tariffs of 20% on Chinese goods will still be in effect.

Prominent names in Silicon Valley, including Elon Musk, have aligned themselves with the Trump administration. Similarly, other CEOs in the tech industry have been actively engaging with Trump and even making substantial contributions to his inauguration. Despite these efforts initially appearing fruitless, last night’s announcement was hailed by Daniel Ives of Wedbush Securities as a “dream scenario” for those investing in technology.

The recent news is sure to bring joy to companies such as Apple and Nvidia, along with American customers who would have faced higher prices for their future iPhone purchases. However, the sector may still face additional challenges, such as specific tariffs and limitations. According to The New York Times, the Trump administration is getting ready to conduct a security-focused inquiry into semiconductors. In fact, U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick mentioned on Sunday that these items will be subject to tariffs in about one or two months as part of “the semiconductor tariffs.”

This post has been updated with Howard Lutnick’s comments about the tariffs.

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