US exempts smartphones, computers from global Trump tariffs

WASHINGTON: The Trump administration has exempted smartphones, computers, and other electronics from its punitive "reciprocal" tariffs, reducing the cost impact on American consumers for a range of popular high-tech products.

The exemptions, published late on Friday in a notice by the US Customs and Border Protection office, apply to various electronic goods, including smartphones and components imported into the United States from China, which are currently subject to an additional 145% tariff.

Semiconductors are also excluded from the "baseline" 10% tariff applied to most US trading partners and the additional 125% levy on China.

The exclusions narrow the scope of the sweeping 10% levies announced by President Donald Trump earlier this month, as well as the additional punitive rate on goods from China.

Trump has specifically targeted China with his "reciprocal tariffs" aimed at addressing practices Washington considers unfair. Most recently, he introduced a new 125% tariff on goods from the world's second-largest economy, which came into effect this week.

This new rate is in addition to an earlier 20% levy imposed by Trump over China's alleged role in fentanyl supply chains, as well as other existing tariffs from previous administrations, bringing the total tariff rate to at least 145% for many products.

Many of the exempted products, such as hard drives and computer processors, are generally not manufactured in the United States.

Although Trump has described tariffs as a means to bring manufacturing back to the United States, it is expected to take years to scale up domestic production.

By RSS/AFP