Apple (AAPL) is joining the growing list of retailers scrambling to avoid President Donald Trump’s latest round of tariffs.
Tariffs are taxes companies pay to import goods from overseas, and the extra cost is often passed down to consumers through price increases.
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On April 2, Trump announced a 10% “baseline” tariff on all countries importing goods to the U.S., with roughly 60 countries seeing higher tariff rates, to free the nation from its reliance on imported goods.
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Trump also recently announced that he is raising his previous 34% tariff on China to 104% on April 9 after Beijing refused to withdraw its 34% retaliatory tariffs on U.S. goods.
Apple sources many of its products, especially iPhones, in China, and tariffs could increase the price of these products. Analysts have estimated that tariffs could increase the price of an iPhone, which usually costs over $1,000, by over $300.
During an earnings call in January, shortly after Trump started implementing tariffs, Apple CEO Tim Cook said the company is “monitoring the situation” regarding how Trump’s tariffs could impact consumer demand for Apple products.
A shopper looks over a display of Apple Inc. iPhones at a T-Mobile US Inc. store.
Image source: Bloomberg/Getty Images
Apple makes a surprising moveÂ
Now, it appears Apple is ramping up efforts to avoid raising the prices of its iPhones, which make up about 50% of the company’s revenue.
According to a new report from the Wall Street Journal, Apple plans to import more iPhones from India to the U.S. to avoid the high tariffs Trump imposed on China. On April 2, Trump announced 27% tariffs on all goods imported from India.
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The move from Apple comes after it announced in February that it would invest $500 billion in expanding U.S. manufacturing facilities over the next four years, which could also help it dodge Trump’s tariffs.
The company is also reportedly planning to receive an exemption from Trump’s tariffs, which Cook received during the first Trump administration in 2018.
Apple is currently suffering from a startling consumer trend
The last thing Apple needs to do is increase the prices of its iPhones, as consumers have already been hesitant to buy newer versions of the product, even before tariffs were imposed.
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According to Apple’s fourth-quarter earnings report for 2024, iPhone net sales slightly dipped by almost 1% year-over-year, and this is after it released its iPhone 16 in September.
A survey from WalletHub last year even found that 63% of Americans are avoiding purchasing a new phone due to inflation. It also revealed that nine out of 10 Americans believe iPhones are overpriced.
However, amid the mayhem surrounding tariffs, many Apple users have reportedly been rushing to upgrade their iPhones over the past week due to fears that tariffs will increase the prices of the products.
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