Because of Trump's tariffs: Framework takes cheap laptops off sale in the USA
Framework takes action after the announcement of new US tariffs and removes some laptops from its range in the USA. Otherwise, this would lead to a loss.
(Image: Framework)
Due to the tariffs imposed by US President Donald Trump on almost all countries in the world, Framework has announced that it will no longer offer some of its cheapest notebooks in the US for now. The US company, which is committed to sustainability, announced on Monday that it would otherwise make a loss on every sale, while at the same time assuring that devices already sold would continue to be supplied with updates. The affected notebooks are therefore basic versions of the medium-sized Framework Laptop 13 with CPUs from Intel and AMD. They have so far been sold for less than 800 US dollars. They will remain available outside the USA and can be pre-ordered in Germany.
Framework told IT magazine 404 that a total of six models are affected by the move. Their price was set when no customs duty was levied on imports from Taiwan. With fees of 10 percent, devices at the lower end of the product line would be sold at a loss. Other suppliers had also carried out such calculations and had come to the same conclusion, “only that most of them do not communicate this openly”. When asked if and when the models would be offered again in the USA, the answer was simply “no comment”.
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Framework's move clarifies that more and more companies are preparing for Donald Trump's tariffs to remain in place and are taking action. Just last weekend, for example, Nintendo announced that it would not be accepting pre-orders for the Switch 2 games console launched last week in the USA. The possible effects of the tariffs are to be assessed first. Last week, Trump imposed blanket tariffs of 10 percent on imports from almost all countries, with country-specific fees added depending on the state. The PC market will be affected by the levies for the automotive market. The announcements caused prices to plummet on the stock markets.
(mho)
