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Technology

Technology

The Big Story

Trump tariff messaging stirs confusion in tech industry

The Trump administration’s back-and-forth moves on tariffs for technology products are stirring confusion in a sector heavily reliant on global supply chains.

© AP Photo/Gene J. Puskar, File

Tech companies breathed a sigh of relief late last week when the Trump administration revealed electronics would be exempt from the “reciprocal” tariffs.

But by the end of the weekend, President Trump signaled many of the same products will still be subject to expected sector-based tariffs.

The dizzying tariff changes are driving uncertainty for the technology industry, which is being forced to make manufacturing and supply chain decisions based on evolving goalposts.

“It’s creating an awful lot of chaos at the moment. A lot of uncertainty,” said Rob Handfield, a professor of supply chain management at North Carolina State University.

The state of play of Trump’s trade war changed a number of times over the past month, though the past two weeks saw some of the most drastic changes when it comes to the tech sector.

Last Friday, guidance posted by Customs and Border Protection, which collects duties on imports, revealed about 20 products would be excluded from the tariffs, including: smartphones, computers, routers and semiconductor chips.

The move was quickly celebrated by those in the tech industry and consumers hoping to avoid paying higher prices for electronics. But this was cut short two days later when Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick clarified the exemption is only a temporary measure.

The White House confirmed it will open a Section 232 investigation into electronics imports, which would serve as the grounds for any tariffs on semiconductors.

The fluctuating messages are putting various technology companies in a tight spot as they weigh adjusting their protocol based on circumstances that could change at any moment.

“Companies cherish stability, predictability, certainty in the business environment and that applies not just to trade policy, but institutionally, programmatically, regulatorily, etc.,” Stephen Ezell, vice president for global innovation policy at the Information Technology and Innovation Foundation told The Hill.

Read more in a full report at TheHill.com.

Welcome to The Hill’s Technology newsletter, we're Miranda Nazzaro and Julia Shapero — tracking the latest moves from Capitol Hill to Silicon Valley.

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