No tariffs on iPhones & co. for 90 days: US government calls solution temporary
Following the US government's decision to suspend mega tariffs on Chinese electronics products, the question is how long this will last.
Tim Cook at Foxconn in China: Currently only 20 percent duty on iPhones to the USA.
(Image: Apple)
Now that the US government has decided to exempt electronic products and storage media from China from the huge 145% tariff for the time being, the question remains as to how long this will last. The US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) initially imposed a moratorium of 90 days. However, as late as Sunday , it was again said that they were working on new, "more specific" tariffs, for example on semiconductors. One US company is particularly affected by this back and forth: the iPhone company Apple. One of the company's recent reactions was to greatly expand production in India and fly in tens of tons of finished devices before the customs deadline. After Apple shares initially recovered, shareholders are eagerly waiting to see what happens next on Monday. The shares were initially up significantly in the after-hours trading.
Temporary lobbying success?
However, the announcement from the Trump administration remains that the halt is only an interim measure. Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick spoke of further or even new tariffs that could come in a month or two. The action could therefore only be short-lived. Apple managed to largely exempt iPhones from tariffs against China in the first Trump administration – partly because CEO Tim Cook had established a direct line to Trump.
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But the chaos is likely to continue this time. In addition, there are also so-called "fentanyl" tariffs of 20%, which Apple is already aware of. The US government wants to send out a signal against the flood of this dangerous chemical drug, which is said to be coming into the country mainly from China but is not being stopped by Beijing, as the Americans claim.
Problems with upstream products too
Even if Apple were to move more of its iPhone, Mac and iPad production to other regions in Asia –, particularly India or Vietnam –, another problem remains: China is currently experiencing a shortage of primary products.
These include rare earths in particular, some of which are now subject to a complete export ban. Although the materials are also available in the USA, South America, Australia and Greenland, they are either still completely unexploited or only available in significantly smaller quantities. At the moment, the entire supply chain – is trembling, and not just at Apple.
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