On the night of April 11, Eastern Time, the US Customs and Border Protection (CBP) announced the exclusion of several products from "reciprocal tariffs," including smartphones, computers, semiconductor equipment, and IC components. According to The Financial Times, US Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick explained the rationale behind President Trump's tariff exemptions in a recent statement on April 14.
In a recent interview with ABC, Lutnick stated that separate tariffs might be levied on smartphones, computers, and other consumer electronics within a month. He noted that as part of the Trump administration's semiconductor investigation, smartphones, laptops, and wireless headphones that were just granted temporary tariff exemptions on April 11 will undergo reevaluation, potentially leading to new tariffs, implying that the exemptions announced may only be temporary.
The inclusion of iPhones in the tariff exemption list for Chinese imports undoubtedly provided relief for Apple.
According to market research firm Omdia, about 80% of the 77 million Apple iPhones imported into the US in 2024 come from China, meaning around 60 million iPhones in the US market were produced in China.
Prior to this exemption measure, the cumulative tariff rate imposed by the Trump administration on Chinese goods reached 145%, which could have significantly hindered Apple's performance.
BBC noted that the inclusion of this exemption policy means that the largest export items from China to the US in 2024, along with electronic devices and parts like semiconductors and solar cells, will be free from import tariffs.
Bloomberg cited estimates from US think tanks indicating that consumer electronics and semiconductors accounted for about 22% of US imports from China in 2024.
Data compiled by Gerard DiPippo, acting associate director of the Rand China Research Center, revealed that these exemptions cover nearly US$390 billion worth of US imports, including over US$101 billion of imports from China, with smartphones being the largest category related to China.
In 2024, the value of smartphones imported from China to the US exceeded US$41 billion, representing about 9% of total US imports from China, predominantly consisting of iPhones. Additionally, computers and similar devices accounted for over US$36 billion in imports from China.
BBC suggests that Trump's gesture towards iPhones signifies a significant retreat in the US-China trade war.
NewsWeek even quoted a commentator describing the situation as "almost getting comical."
Article edited by Jack Wu
