Until now, the tech world has been under pressure following the announcement of the Trump administration’s tariffs. If the tariffs were applied, tech products in the US would literally explode… Especially if the 125% import duty on products from China is anything to go by, with a further 20% in duties. The situation would quickly have become untenable for the Americans, and exemptions have been granted.
Smartphones, PCs and certain components are exempt!
Following an international outcry and for other reasons, the administration has applied a moratorium on the application of customs tariffs and exemptions on products from China. These include smartphones, PCs and certain components, which are benefiting from a breath of fresh air. This should ensure that component prices do not skyrocket. Instead, these products will have to make do with a smaller increase of 20%.
However, as our colleagues have pointed out, these exemptions do not apply to games consoles. So Sony’s PlayStation and Microsoft’s XBox could see their prices rise… The same goes for Nintendo’s Switch 2, which is already expensive enough as it is. With this new situation, Nintendo’s family console could even become unaffordable. What’s more, we can also expect prices to rise in Europe as a result of a rebound effect. Manufacturers are likely to pass on their losses in the form of higher prices.
Now it remains to be seen what will happen next, since customs duties are benefiting from a short 90-day break. The same goes for exemptions: will they be maintained or cancelled as soon as the Trump administration gets the chance? It’s hard to say.
What’s more, imposing customs duties of this kind while being so dependent on Chinese imports seemed a little optimistic to us.
