President Donald Trump on Friday threatened Apple with a 25% tariff for any iPhone sold but not made in the United States — putting new pressure on CEO Tim Cook to move manufacturing out of Asia.
“I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhone’s that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else,” Trump in a Truth Social post.
“If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the US. Thank you for your attention to this matter!”
Apple shares fell 3%, closing at $195.27, and is down 20% on the year.
Apple did not respond to a request for comment on Trump’s threat.
Cook had met with Trump at the White House this week, the Wall Street Journal reported.
The Cupertino, Calif., based company makes most of its iPhones in China and has no domestic smartphone production.
WedBush analyst Dan Ives said Trump’s demand for Apple to make its top-selling product in the US “is a fairy tale that is not feasible.”
“This would result in an iPhone price point that is a non-starter for Cupertino and translate into iPhone prices of ~$3,500 if it was made in the US which is not realistic as this would take 5-10 years to shift production to the US,” Ives wrote in a note.
Kevin O’Marah, a supply chain expert, predicted the 25% tariff would spike iPhone prices by around $100.
“No one will quit their iPhone, but some will delay the upgrade to a new model,” said O’Marah, Chief Research Officer at Zero100, which advises companies that have included Walmart, Maersk and PepsiCo.
“Apple can also afford to eat some of the tariff cost by edging up prices on their digital services to help cover and maintain margins.”
Later on Friday, Trump told reporters inside the Oval Office that his proposed tariff on Apple would also apply to “Samsung and anybody that makes that product,” apparently referring to smartphones.
He also said he expected the new phone levy to be in place by the end of June.
Trump’s early-morning broadside at Apple followed a demand earlier this month that the company stop building plants in India — part of its effort to shift production from China — and instead focus on the US.
In February, Apple said it will spend $500 billion over four years to expand hiring and facilities in nine American states, but it did not say the investment would go towards bringing iPhone manufacturing to the US.
Apple aims to make most of its iPhones sold in the US at factories in India by the end of 2026, and is speeding up those plans to navigate potentially higher tariffs in China, its main manufacturing base, a source told Reuters.
But Trump and others, including Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, have suggested Apple could make iPhones in the US.
Trump had exempted electronics, including iPhones, from his 145% reciprocal tariffs on China that were rolled out last month.
The two countries reached a 90-day tariff truce on their trade war earlier this month, which helped settle rattled markets.
More than 60 million phones are sold in the US annually, but the country has no smartphone manufacturing.
With Post wires
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