Trump's new tariff plan spares some smartphones, laptops

UPDATE: April 13, 2025, 4:00 p.m.

Don’t get too comfortable. The tariff exemptions announced Friday are only temporary. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik said Sunday that smartphones, semiconductors, and display modules will fall under new "semiconductors" tariffs rolling out in “a month or two.”

You can catch up on the original story below.

The specifics of President Donald Trump's tariffs have changed quite a bit over the past few days. Now, it looks like a whole host of electronics, including most smartphones, will be excluded from the new tariffs.

According to guidelines released Friday from Customs and Border Protection, there are 20 products that are exempt from the 125 percent tariff imposed on Chinese imports and also the updated 10 percent baseline tariff on imports from other countries. The updated guidance had nothing to say about the current 20 percent tariff on Chinese goods. The exempt products include smartphones, computers, semiconductors, and flat-panel display modules. China, meanwhile, raised tariffs on U.S. imports by 125%.

White House Deputy Press Secretary Kush Desai told CNBC that "President Trump has made it clear America cannot rely on China to manufacture critical technologies such as semiconductors, chips, smartphones, and laptops."

"At the direction of the President, these companies are hustling to onshore their manufacturing in the United States as soon as possible," Desai said in the statement.

CNBC reported earlier this week that people panic-bought iPhones in response to the proposed 125 percent tariffs earlier this month, fearing they would be priced out of the tech once tariffs were put in place. Apple was anticipating major difficulties in response. This new tariff drop might be good news for Apple — at least for now.

UPDATE: Apr. 13, 2025, 1:11 p.m. This article was updated to add new information announced by Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnik.