Laptop Prices Will Jump 19% Due to Tariffs, Report Claims

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A new report commissioned by The Consumer Technology Association, a consumer trade organization, states that the Trump administration’s proposed tariffs on imported goods from China would raise the U.S. price of laptops and tablets by 19%. Cnet first reported on the study.

According to the report, United States-based customers can expect about a $120 increase on a laptop priced at the national average - currently, $622. As a result, the report suggests, consumers will be forced to reduce their overall purchases of laptops and tablets by 35%.

This is compounded by the fact that China currently accounts for over 90% of the imports of laptops and tablets into the United States. Corporations such as Microsoft and Apple face steep costs in shifting production to other countries, according to the report. It questions whether it is possible to completely move manufacturing elsewhere, given China’s output is 35 times greater than its closest competitor.   

President Donald Trump has proposed tariffs of up to 25% on consumer goods imported from China in an ongoing trade war that will also affect cell phones, video game consoles and toy drones. According to the report, which was released on Monday, the consumer electronics market may face climbing prices. The U.S. price of cell phones would rise 14%, while prices for video game consoles would also increase 19%. Additionally, the price of drones would jump 15%. If the tariffs go into effect, the surge in pricing looks to leave both consumers and manufacturers with a serious case of sticker shock.

The Consumer Technology Association represents the U.S. consumer electronics industry with more than 2,200 members.

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Sarah Lord
10 Comments Comment from the forums
  • Geef
    Oh really? The same as it moved when the first deal was signed with China that they chose to renig on? Or the first 10% tariff raise? Prices could increase 10,000% or no %. Spreading fear doesn't help.
    Reply
  • The_Capulet
    Even if it were true... Totally worth it.
    Reply
  • fball922
    You can only pass off so much to the consumer. Part of it will squeeze margins, some of it will raise prices... Until something changes and we reach a balance.

    Agreed with above though, worth it.
    Reply
  • southernshark
    I don't believe it. Yeah, moving stuff out of China will be expensive. But you know, for many products we the consumers never got a cost decrease anyway. Look at Nike shoes and Converse, more expensive after moving. I'm sure big companies can move stuff and manufacture stuff in other places. China ain't all that.
    Reply
  • Scare tactics This is the ultimate greed by companies telling you they’re going to raise their prices All the while blaming it on something else
    Reply
  • mitch074
    Not moving production from China : increase price with new taxes.
    Move production from China to another cheap labor country : move the problem, increase price by 20%
    Move production back to domestic : increase price by 300%

    Try to reduce margin to not impact customers as much: investors are not happy.

    It's a lose/lose transaction.
    Reply
  • bigdragon
    The industry will use any excuse it can to raise prices. This is nothing new and just scare tactics to push consumers into accepting higher prices.

    This is also a great time for OEMs to start producing more AMD laptops. I'm still waiting to see AMD show up in premium devices. The performance (Ryzen 5 2500U specifically) is on par with Intel and runs cooler. It's time to switch.
    Reply
  • shmoochie
    Did anyone actually look at the report? I legitimately don't understand why everyone is just saying it is just "scare tactics." China exports 90% of laptops to the US. It also outputs 35 times more than its closest competitor, which means companies will be hard pressed to shift production to some other place with no infrastructure. Why would we not see price hikes??
    Reply
  • The_Capulet
    Oh, we'll see price hikes. There's no doubt about that. What most people are saying here is who fucking cares? The companies could take a hit and sell competitively if they wanted too. But they won't. And that's fine. That's they're choice. But there will be companies who already produce outside of china, or who move their production over. And those will be the companies that remain competitive. That's the whole point in a trade war. Strengthen your own domestic industries instead of exporting so much goddamned cash into a foreign nation.

    Sure, that will still end with Americans paying more. But at the same time, Americans will get paid more too. It's an issue that takes care of itself.
    Reply
  • TJ Hooker
    The_Capulet said:
    That's the whole point in a trade war. Strengthen your own domestic industries instead of exporting so much goddamned cash into a foreign nation.
    If companies move their operations out of China as a result of these tariffs it's going to be to somewhere else with cheap labor and/or weak regulations, not to the US.
    Reply