According to US Customs, Trump spared Chinese electronics from new tariffs. The exemption covers smartphones, monitors, chips, electronic parts, and high-performance GPUs arriving after April 5.
Tech companies can breathe easier about potential cost increases. Apple makes about 90 percent of iPhones in China and keeps six weeks of inventory stateside. Consumers would have paid more when that stock ran out without this exemption. Framework already paused sales of some laptop models and cut prices on others after a separate 10 percent tariff on Taiwanese parts affected their profits.
GPU manufacturers found another tariff workaround through the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Research firm SemiAnalysis noted that graphics cards made in Taiwan can enter America without tariffs if they undergo final assembly in Mexico or Canada. This applies to digital processing units and circuit boards, which means AI companies using NVIDIA accelerators won't face immediate price increases.
White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt explained that these measures aim to keep consumer prices down short term but also encourage tech giants like Apple, TSMC, and NVIDIA to invest in American manufacturing. Many analysts caution that precision components remain predominantly Asian-made, and building domestic capacity might take years and cost more.
Tech companies can breathe easier about potential cost increases. Apple makes about 90 percent of iPhones in China and keeps six weeks of inventory stateside. Consumers would have paid more when that stock ran out without this exemption. Framework already paused sales of some laptop models and cut prices on others after a separate 10 percent tariff on Taiwanese parts affected their profits.
GPU manufacturers found another tariff workaround through the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement. Research firm SemiAnalysis noted that graphics cards made in Taiwan can enter America without tariffs if they undergo final assembly in Mexico or Canada. This applies to digital processing units and circuit boards, which means AI companies using NVIDIA accelerators won't face immediate price increases.
White House spokesperson Karoline Leavitt explained that these measures aim to keep consumer prices down short term but also encourage tech giants like Apple, TSMC, and NVIDIA to invest in American manufacturing. Many analysts caution that precision components remain predominantly Asian-made, and building domestic capacity might take years and cost more.
