Major Apple suppliers have suggested that some production could be moved to the US and other countries to avoid the brunt of President Trump's 104% tariffs in China.
Luxshare, a Chinese company that assembles the iPhone and creates Airpods, will rethink some planned investments in China as Trump's trade war unfolds, Chairman Wang Laichun said in a lengthy call with analysts on Wednesday.
“If there is a commercial guarantee and a proper assessment can be carried out, we do not rule out that some products are localized to meet the needs of the US market,” Wang said, according to the transcript. Retrieved by Reuters.
Apple's stock has been under pressure these days, as Trump's tariffs are particularly damaging to the supply chain.
Tim Cook's company manufactures most of the Chinese hardware, including the flagship iPhone.
Trump has also imposed a 46% tariff on Vietnam and a 26% tariff on India. This is two of Apple's other major production hubs.
Vietnam is one of the countries that began negotiations with the Trump administration to deal with tariffs.
Meanwhile, Apple is reportedly considering shifting more production to India to avoid higher tariff levels in China.
The king did not specifically refer to Apple during her remarks. Apart from China, Luxea has facilities in the United States, Mexico, Vietnam, Thailand and Malaysia.
The boss of LuxShare said it will take some time before more production is offered online in other countries.
Wang also became more likely that customers would search for better deals as the cost of the product increased due to tariffs.
“Customers have always been working with suppliers on how to make them more competitive,” she said.
Overall, Wang said that tariffs are unlikely to have a major impact on LuxShare's profits as the company does not export many of the finished products directly to the US.
Apple did not immediately reply to requests for a comment.
It is unclear whether Apple will raise customers' prices as a result of the expected increase in manufacturing costs.
