Apple shares fall on Trump's new tariffs

Donald Trump's administration is imposing new tariffs that will hit Apple's supply chain, MacRumors reports.

The company has tried to diversify its production by moving to India, Vietnam and Thailand, but these countries are now also subject to high tariffs. In addition, tariffs have been imposed on China, Taiwan, Japan, Malaysia and the EU. The minimum tariff for all US trading partners is 10%, but in some cases it is much higher, for example, for Vietnam it is 46%, for China it is 34% and for Taiwan it is 32%.

Apple will be particularly hard hit by tariffs on Taiwan, as it manufactures Apple Silicon, which is used in all of its devices. The company previously managed to get exemptions from tariffs under Trump, but this time he has said he will not grant exemptions.

Morgan Stanley estimates that importing products from China will cost Apple an additional $8.5 billion a year. It is not yet known whether the company will pass on these costs to consumers by raising prices.

Apple CEO Tim Cook has previously stressed that the US cannot compete with China in manufacturing due to a shortage of skilled workers in advanced technology.

Apple shares fell 7.5% in after-hours trading on the announcement of the new tariffs, which are scheduled to take effect on April 9.