The US-China Trade War and Its Impact on iPhones Imported From China

October 2018 | 14 pages | ID: U79C745DCC4EN
Market Intelligence & Consulting Institute (MIC)

Abstracts

The US-China trade war is escalating. In the first two rounds of tariffs, the US has imposed duties on a total of US$50 billion worth of Chinese goods, including semiconductor ICs, car parts, machinery, and equipment. The third round of tariffs has brought the total value to US$250 billion. However, Trump has no intention to back down as he has threatened to impose tariffs totaling $500 billion on 90% of Chinese imported goods. Smartphones are likely to be on the list. As Apple has heavily relied on Taiwanese manufacturers for its iPhones, the new tariffs are likely to have a major impact on Apple iPhone's supply chain. This report starts from the background of the incident, examines the impact from the market and supply chain perspectives, and gives a brief analysis of countermeasures of iPhone partners in short and mid-to-long terms.

Contents

1. BACKGROUND

1.1 iPhone Likely to Become a Bargaining Chip in US-China Trade War

2. IMPACT ANALYSIS3

2.1 iPhone Accounts for over 42% of the Smartphone Imports in the United States
2.2 Impact on Supply Chain

3. COUNTERMEASURES

3.1 Short-term Strategy: Adjust Existing Capacity to Increase Production in Taiwan
3.2 Mid-to Long-Term Strategy: Increase Production Share in South/Southeast Asia

4. MIC PERSPECTIVES

Appendix
Glossary of Terms
List of Companies

List Of Tables

LIST OF TABLES

Table 1 Tariffs and Prices of iPhone X in Different Countries
Table 2 Impact of US-China Trade War on Apple’s Taiwanese Partners
Table 3 Analysis of EMS Providers’ Production Sites