Trump expands Apple tariff threat to all smartphones
WASHINGTON - US President Donald Trump on Friday threatened Apple and other smartphone manufacturers with a 25 percent tariff unless their devices are built in the United States.
Trump initially said the tariff would apply only to Apple - an unusual move to single out a specific company in trade policy. However, he later expanded the threat to include all smartphone makers.
"It would be also Samsung and anybody that makes that product, otherwise it wouldn't be fair," Trump told reporters in Washington, adding that the new tariffs would take effect by the "end of June."
While Apple designs its products in the United States, most iPhone assembly occurs in China, which remains embroiled in a trade war with the United States.
Apple has announced plans to shift some production to other countries, including India, but Trump said this would not satisfy his demands.
In a post on Truth Social, Trump wrote that he had "long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhones that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else."
"If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the US," he added.
Trump's comments echoed statements he made during a trip to Qatar last week, when he urged Apple to bring iPhone production stateside.
"I had a little problem with Tim Cook," Trump said on 15 May.
He recounted how he told Apple's CEO: "We're not interested in you building in India... we want you to build here and they're going to be upping their production in the United States."
Apple's main rival, South Korea's Samsung, finds itself in a similar situation, with most of its production in Vietnam, China and India.
Apple and Samsung account for about 80% of smartphone sales in the United States. Smaller players including Google, Xiaomi and Motorola also have most of their handsets made abroad.
'FAIRY TALE'
Analysts widely agree that shifting iPhone manufacturing to the United States is unrealistic and would require a fundamental overhaul of Apple's business model - a process that could take years, if it's possible at all.
According to Wedbush Securities estimates, about 90% of Apple's iPhone production and assembly remains based in China despite some production shifts.
Reshoring iPhone production to the United States "is a fairy tale that is not feasible," Wedbush Securities analyst Dan Ives said in a research note.
The constant pressure from the White House has taken a toll on Apple's stock price, which has fallen more than 20%since Trump took office in January with his protectionist agenda.
Apple shares closed down 3.0 percent in New York on Friday.
Unlike during Trump's first term, when Apple received exceptions from China-focused trade measures, the company has become a regular presidential target this time around.
Cook warned last month about the uncertain impact of threatened US tariffs on Chinese products, which at one point were hiked to 145%, despite temporary relief for high-end tech goods like smartphones.
He said Apple expects US tariffs to cost it $900 million in the current quarter.
"Prices of handsets look set to rise, given iPhones will end up being more expensive, if the threats turn into concrete trade policy," said Susannah Streeter, an analyst at Hargreaves Lansdown.
"While die-hard fans will still be prepared to pay big bucks for Apple's kit, it'll be much harder for the middle-class masses who are already dealing with price hikes on other goods, from Nike trainers to toys sold in Walmart."
Last week, the United States and China agreed to suspend sweeping tariffs on each other's goods for 90 days, marking a temporary de-escalation in the trade war.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
The South African
19 minutes ago
- The South African
Elon Musk: 'I won Donald Trump the US election'
Elon Musk on Thursday ratcheted up his public spat with Donald Trump, saying the US president would have lost the election without his support. 'Without me, Trump would have lost the election,' Musk said on X. 'Such ingratitude.' Meanwhile, Tesla shares fell sharply on Wall Street, down eight percent, on Thursday immediately after the spat erupted between Trump and Musk, the electric car company's CEO. Trump said he was disappointed by Musk criticising his proposed massive spending bill. This breaking news story is being updated and more details will be published shortly. Please refresh the page for the fullest version. Let us know by leaving a comment below, or send a WhatsApp to 060 011 021 1 Subscribe to The South African website's newsletters and follow us on WhatsApp, Facebook, X and Bluesky for the latest news.
Eyewitness News
an hour ago
- Eyewitness News
Iranians' World Cup dream crushed by US travel ban
TEHRAN - A year out from kick-off, Iranian football fans are watching their World Cup dream slip away after a US travel ban barred them from entering the land of "Great Satan" to cheer on their team. The 2026 tournament will be co-hosted by the United States, Canada and Mexico, but most matches, including the final, are scheduled to be played on American soil. Many in Iran had clung to hopes of cheering from the stands until Wednesday when US President Donald Trump rolled out a new travel ban on 12 countries including Iran, which will take effect from Monday. "My friends and I have been waiting for years to watch Team Melli (a nickname for the national team) play in a World Cup on US soil, and when they qualified, it felt like a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity," Sohrab Naderi, a real estate agent in Tehran, told AFP. "Now with the new travel ban, that dream is shattered because of politics that we don't care about and have no control over," said the 46-year-old who attended the 2022 World Cup in Qatar which saw the US side defeat Iran 1-0 in the group stage. The prospect of Iran competing in a US-hosted tournament comes against the backdrop of a decades-long enmity, with diplomatic ties broken since the 1979 Islamic revolution. The two sides are currently engaged in high-stakes talks over Iran's nuclear programme, with the United States threatening military action if no deal can be reached. 'DEGRADING TO ALL IRANIANS' Trump said the new travel ban was prompted by a makeshift flamethrower attack on a Jewish protest in Colorado that US authorities blamed on a man they said was in the country illegally. The ban will not apply to athletes competing in either the 2026 World Cup or the 2028 Los Angeles Olympics, the order said. Nonetheless, supporters who had dreamed of crossing the Atlantic to cheer on their team will no longer be able to make the trip. "Every Iranian has the right to support their team, just as much as any other country, whether the game is in America or in any other country," said Hasti Teymourpour, a 16-year-old football fan. Since his return to office in January, Trump has reinstated his "maximum pressure" policy of sanctions against Iran and vowed that "something bad" would happen unless the Iranians "move quickly" towards a nuclear deal. Naderi, who called the ban "inhumane" and "degrading to all Iranians", still hopes the Iran-US nuclear talks will yield a deal that might persuade Trump to reconsider. The outcome of the US-Iran talks that began in April remains unclear, and many fans worry that even if they result in a deal, it may be too late for them. Some Iranians have refused to give up hope, however, seeing in the World Cup an opportunity to thaw relations. "Sports diplomacy can act as a strong catalyst and bring the efforts of political diplomats to fruition sooner," said political commentator Mohammad Reza Manafi. It could be "a great opportunity to help advance diplomacy between the two countries". FRIENDLY? In a memorable 1998 World Cup clash, Iranian players handed flowers to their American adversaries and posed together for photos -- a rare public gesture of goodwill between the nations. Iran won 2–1, a victory celebrated in Tehran as a source of both sporting and political pride. With the 2026 draw expected in December, it remains unclear whether Iran and the United States will face off again, but anticipation is building. "The two countries are not hostile to each other, this political discussion is for the governments," said 44-year-old day labourer Siamak Kalantari. Another fan, Mahdieh Olfati, said: "If we face the US again, we'll definitely win." "Ours are real players," the 18-year-old added. Manafi, the commentator, said a friendly before the tournament, possibly hosted by a third country, could help ease tensions. Such a game, he said, could help "achieve what politicians from both sides have not managed to do for years".
Daily Maverick
an hour ago
- Daily Maverick
US faces vape shortage as China tariffs, seizures hit Geek Bar
Shipments of vapes from China to the U.S. ground to a near halt in May from a year ago, official data shows, hit by U.S. President Donald Trump's tariffs and a crackdown on unauthorised e-cigarettes in the world's biggest market for smoking alternatives. That includes Geek Bar, a brand of flavoured vapes that is not authorised to sell in the U.S. but which had been widely available due to porous import controls. One retailer, who asked not to be named because their business sells unauthorised vapes, told Reuters that one of the store's vape suppliers normally receives 100 boxes of Geek Bar vapes per week, but is now getting just ten. Another supplier imposed unprecedented purchase limits. 'There were a lot of supply chain issues' during COVID-19, the person said. 'But I've never seen this.' The U.S. supplier limited purchases to five boxes at a time due to 'tariff-related price increases and limited market availability', an undated notice to customers seen by Reuters showed. Trump's decision to impose steep tariffs on China, now at 30% after peaking at 145% in April, as well as blockbuster seizures of unauthorised vapes, have constrained the supply of Chinese-owned vape brands and Geek Bar in particular, according to five industry sources and notices from U.S. Geek Bar wholesalers reviewed by Reuters. Between May 1 and May 28 the U.S. Food and Drug Administration recorded just 71 shipments of products labelled as e-cigarettes or vapes from China, compared with nearly 1,200 over the same period last year. Such imports had fallen between 40% and 60% in February, March and April, after Trump came into office, but collapsed in May, the data show. 'Due to increased tariffs, rising production costs, and reduced supply chain capacity, the manufacturer has informed us that they will be reducing supply volume in the near-term,' one U.S. regional Geek Bar wholesaler wrote to customers on April 22 in an email shared with Reuters. 'WE'RE TALKING ABOUT NICOTINE HERE' In the meantime, vape distributors expect prices to go in one direction. 'With tariffs, it'll definitely go up,' said one U.S. vape distributor who asked not to be named. But that might not impact sales much. Unauthorised vape manufacturers enjoy hefty margins, and so can eat some of the cost of tariffs, Luis Pinto, a spokesperson for British American Tobacco's BATS.L U.S. subsidiary, said. Meanwhile, consumers hooked on vapes tend to keep buying, even as the price goes up. 'If the price goes up, the price goes up. We're talking about nicotine here,' the vape distributor said, adding unlike other products, addicted users need their fix. Vapes like Geek Bar – priced around $20 currently – would still be good value even with a $5 increase, the person said. Geek Bar manufacturer, Guangdong Qisitech, did not respond to a request for comment sent to its general email address. Pinto agreed the tariffs will increase prices but probably not to the point 'where it is a barrier to usage'. Many of the vapes landing on U.S. shelves are manufactured in Shenzhen, which meets the majority of the world's demand for vapes. Some factories there make devices for large tobacco companies with the legal licence to sell their products in the United States, such as Japan Tobacco International 2914.T. Others fuel a booming market for unregulated devices that U.S. authorities say are illegal to import or sell. To mitigate tariffs, illicit vape producers can mislabel or undervalue their shipments or spoof their origin entirely to make it look like they came from a lower-tariff country like Indonesia, Vietnam or Mexico, Pinto said. Vapes from China are often smuggled into the U.S. disguised as other items entirely, such as shoes or toys, to evade officials hunting for unauthorised vapes at the border, according to public statements from the FDA and Customs and Border Protection. Geek Bar was by far the most popular unauthorised vape brand in the U.S. last year, accounting for around a quarter of sales tracked by market research company Circana in 2024 despite lacking a licence to sell from the FDA, which has struggled to contain illegal imports from China. The brand, as well as thousands of other labels often made in China and lacking FDA permission, are stocked by wholesalers and retailers around the country, often sold alongside authorised labels from big tobacco companies like BAT and Altria MO.N. PANIC BUYING U.S. tariffs have driven panic buying of vapes by U.S. buyers, higher shipping costs and increased risks at the border, the distributor, a former distributor and a person who used to work for a major Chinese vape company said. Substantial vape seizures were also a big driver of Geek Bar supply issues, two of the sources said. The FDA announced a large seizure in Chicago in February, and new FDA commissioner Marty Makary has pledged to crack down on unauthorised vapes. Government notices on seized goods show further vape seizures in March and April. The growth of Geek Bar and other unregulated vape brands have eaten into the market share of cigarette companies like Altria and BAT, which estimates unauthorised e-cigarettes accounted for some 70% of all U.S. vape sales last year. Altria CEO Billy Gifford told investors in April that he hoped tariffs would lead to 'much more enforcement' of vapes at the border. Trump's trade war with China has also seen China-U.S. air freight and shipping capacity collapse limiting shipping capacity for cargo including vapes. The FDA's data only captures shipments properly declared as vapes. As a result, it has recorded declining vape shipments since 2020 even as industry sales have grown. An FDA spokesperson said the agency expects the number of shipments it captures to increase as it ramps up efforts to ensure compliance and prevent illegal imports. Unauthorised vape makers have also been moving production to Indonesia – a shift that prolonged tariffs on China would likely accelerate, the former employee said. Vape makers are 'highly adaptable', the person said. 'Whatever happens in the U.S., the industry will survive.'
