The administration of U.S. President Donald Trump has decided to exempt smartphones, computers, and several other electronic devices from a sweeping set of reciprocal tariffs, delivering a measure of relief to global tech giants such as South Korea’s Samsung Electronics Co. and Apple Inc.
According to a notice released Saturday by U.S. Customs and Border Protection (CBP), the exemptions apply to products including smartphones, laptops, personal computers, servers, and semiconductor equipment—items that were previously subject to steep levies of up to 125% under Trump’s tariff regime targeting Chinese imports. The exemptions will be applied retroactively from April 5.
The move is seen as a partial rollback of Trump’s broader tariff strategy, which was initially designed to impose aggressive, country-specific reciprocal tariffs on imports in an effort to correct what he described as “unfair trade practices.” This approach aimed to match or exceed the tariffs imposed by trading partners on U.S. goods.
Last week, Trump paused full implementation of that scheme for 90 days and instead introduced a uniform 10% global tariff. Despite the exemptions for some electronics, earlier blanket duties of 20% on Chinese imports—justified by the administration as a response to the U.S. fentanyl crisis—will remain in place, according to foreign media reports.
The decision to carve out exemptions for key tech products is expected to calm fears of further disruption and price hikes in the global electronics supply chain, much of which remains deeply reliant on Chinese manufacturing.
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