Due to import duties: Acer raises notebook prices in the USA by 10 percent

The computer manufacturer Acer is increasing the prices of its notebooks in the USA by 10 percent. Acer confirmed this to The Telegraph. Acer cites the increased US import duties on hardware manufactured in China as the reason.

Acer is also based in Taiwan and produces its notebooks there. Accordingly, the computer manufacturer's hardware is subject to the import tariffs recently imposed by the Trump administration in the USA, which came into force at the beginning of February.

Price increases

Acer now intends to pass on the import surcharge imposed by the Trump administration to its customers. According to Acer CEO Jason Chen, an increase of 10 percent is planned, which is exactly the amount of the tariffs assessed on Chinese imports in the US. “We think 10 percent will be the standard price increase because of the import tax. That's quite simple,” says Chen.

The tariffs will affect goods manufactured in China and imported into the US that arrive in the US on or after February 4, 2025. Goods imported before this date are not affected. Accordingly, Acer will not increase the price of notebooks imported into the US before February 4, Chen promises.

However, it may take some time before the price increase reaches customers. It will probably be a few weeks before they are visible and noticeable in the stores.

Relocation of production?

Other computer manufacturers such as Dell, HP, IBM and Apple are also affected by the import duties. Asus and Lenovo are also affected. However, the manufacturers have not yet confirmed that they will raise their retail prices in line with the import surcharge and thus pass it on to customers. However, it can be assumed that this will still happen. This is because the options for computer manufacturers producing in China are limited. Although they can switch to production facilities in countries such as Mexico, India and other Southeast Asian countries, this would be more of a long-term solution. In the short term, price increases are likely to be unavoidable.

If companies are unable to come to terms with the US tariffs, this would result in production being relocated to other countries in the long term. Trump may then have achieved one of the goals he wanted to achieve with the tariffs. However, whether production will then move to the USA is likely to be questionable due to the prevailing wage structure there.

(olb)