President Donald Trump (pictured) warned in a social media post Apple could be hit with a 25 per cent tariff if it does not manufacture iPhones in the US, which marks the second time in May that he voiced his displeasure over CEO Tim Cook’s plan to ramp up production in India.
In a post on his Truth Social platform, Trump wrote he had “long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhone’s that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else”.
“If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the US,” he stated.
Wedbush analyst Dan Ives estimates the cost of a US-made iPhone could reach $3,500 compared to the current cost of $1,000 for an iPhone 16 Pro.
Trump’s tariff demand came less than 24 hours after The Financial Times reported Apple supplier Foxconn was finalising plans for a $1.5 billion iPhone component production centre in India.
In April, Cook met with officials of Trump’s administration to discuss the possible impact of tariffs. Apple is trying to move more of the production of its devices out of China to countries such as India.
Trump’s previous threat of 26 per cent tariffs on Indian imports are on hold for about three months after the US president called a 90-day pause in early April.
Cook is among a number of high-tech titans that donated to Trump’s inauguration ceremony in January. Axios reported Cook personally donated $1 million.
Following his post about Apple, Trump stated on the social media site he will impose a 50 per cent tariff starting 1 June on imports from the European Union. He noted there will be no tariffs imposed if the goods are manufactured or built in the US.
Trump stated trade talks with the EU “are going nowhere!”