Apple, Intel: US Tariffs on China Will Increase Prices for Electronics

Both Apple and Intel are warning that President Trump's trade war with China will increase prices for consumer electronics, including the Apple Watch and AirPods.

"Our concern with these tariffs is that the US will be hardest hit, and that will result in lower US growth and competitiveness and higher prices for US consumers," Apple said in a letter to the country's trade representative office.

Thursday marked the final day for the public to comment on Trump's proposal to impose a 25 percent on $200 billion in Chinese goods. Both Apple and Intel were among the companies that filed written letters, opposing the plan.

The proposed tariff list includes thousands of different product categories, some of which cover electronic components and devices. Apple's letter to the US trade office named several company products that risk facing duties; they include the HomePod, the Apple Pencil, company chargers and adapters for Apple devices, and even the leather covers for iPhones and iPads.

In addition, the tariffs will also raise the costs to run Apple's manufacturing and product repair facilities in the US by placing duties on logic boards, microprocessing units, and other electronic equipment, the company said. "Because all tariffs ultimately show up as a tax on US consumers, they will increase the cost of Apple products that our customers have come to rely on in their daily lives," the tech giant added.

Intel's letter goes further and warns that the tariffs will impact all consumer electronics, including smartphones, laptops and desktop PCs. That's because the devices all use certain Chinese-manufactured electronic components that fall under the tariff list. For instance, product categories including "printed circuit assemblies," "digital cameras" and machines that can receive, convert and transmit voice, image and other data, are all named on the tariff list.

"In summary, [the proposed tariff list] is so broad and encompasses so many information, communication and technology (ICT) products that significant consumer harm is unavoidable," Intel said.

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The chip maker points to a study from the trade group, the Consumer Technology Association, which estimates the proposed tariffs will increase prices for US electronics by 6 percent. According to Intel, the tariffs will also threaten to slow the country's 5G rollout by increasing the costs for telecommunication providers to upgrade to the faster networks.

Both Intel and Apple are urging the Trump administration to re-evaluate the proposed tariff list, which is currently under review by the White House. But despite their opposition, more tariffs might be down the pipeline. On Friday President Trump said he was prepared to punish China with additional duties, this time on $267 billion in Chinese goods.

"I hate to do this, but behind that ($200 billion tariff list) there is another $267 billion ready to go on short notice if I want," Trump told reporters.