The $200 billion U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods may have their first targets, a report from Reuters suggests. Apple Watch, FitBit and other health trackers, Sonos streaming music speakers and accessories and peripherals built in China will likely be affected, according to government rulings.
The specific devices, which could face a 10 percent tariff, include the original Apple Watch (but seemingly not more recent models), Fitbit Charge, Charge HR and Surge and Sonos Play:3, Play:5 and SUB speakers. The Apple Watch is an odd choice, as Apple no longer sells the Series 0 model.
The report says that the wearables and speakers fall under "data transmission machines" in a list of over 6,000 U.S. tariff codes released earlier this month.
We also looked into how this move in the trade war may affect your next PC build or other tech-related purchases. U.S. PC companies were unaware if the tariffs would hit them. However, when Sonos filed to go public earlier this month, it said that “the imposition of tariffs and other trade barriers, as well as retaliatory trade measures, could require us to raise the prices of our products and harm our sales.” And that may be exactly what happens here.
According to Reuters, companies who suspect their products have tariff codes on the list should either apply for an exclusion, try to have their devices classified differently, or fight to get the code dropped during the current public comment period.
The list that went into effect earlier this month include transistors and capacitors, printed circuit boards, flat panel displays and LEDs, so there's a wide variety of other tech and components that could potentially be affected.
