US President Donald Trump is moving forward with his plan to impose tariffs on foreign-made semiconductors, including those from Taiwan’s TSMC, despite a meeting with Nvidia CEO Jensen Huang earlier in the day. Trump announced that he plans to introduce tariffs on chips around February 18.
The US administration has already set 25% tariffs on Canadian and Mexican goods and 10% tariffs on Chinese-made products starting February 1. However, some experts warn that manufacturers may pass on the added costs to consumers, leading to price hikes. China and Mexico are home to numerous electronics factories for major vendors, which have been migrating their manufacturing to other countries such as Vietnam and India.
Trump said that tariffs do not cause inflation but rather success. He also suggested that tech companies should migrate their manufacturing to the US, but building semiconductor fabs can take years and billions in investment. The European Union is also a potential target for Trump’s tariffs, with him hinting at imposing duties on the EU due to perceived unfair treatment.
Earlier this month, the Consumer Technology Association warned of potential price hikes for PCs, smartphones, consoles, laptops, and tablets if tariffs are implemented.
Source: https://uk.pcmag.com/computers-electronics/156514/despite-meeting-with-nvidia-ceo-trump-sticks-with-plan-to-tariff-foreign-chips