Apple says Trump’s tariffs would affect product costs, reduce company’s contributions to U.S. economy

A trade war with China is making some companies in the United States less-than-positive about the future, and Apple is no different. The company has issued a warning, saying that additional tariffs could have a wide range of negative impact on the company — and consumers.

Apple is asking the Trump administration not to move forward with another round of tariffs against China. This latest effort, if it does come to pass, would see an even wider range of products impacted by the move, including complete devices of technology, including the iPhone, the iPad, Mac notebooks, the Apple Watch, Apple TV, and even the HomePod. Repair parts, batteries, and Beats-branded headphones would also be impacted by the new tariffs, which the Trump administration says would be up to 25 percent.

Apple sent a letter to the United States Trade Representative Robert Lighthizer this week (via CNBC):

U.S. tariffs on Apple’s products would result in a reduction of Apple’s U.S. economic contribution.

U.S. tariffs would also weigh on Apple’s global competitiveness. The Chinese producers we compete with in global markets do not have a significant presence in the U.S. market, and so would not be impacted by U.S. tariffs. Neither would our other major non-U.S. competitors. A U.S. tariff would, therefore, tilt the playing field in favor of our global competitors.

We urge you not to proceed with these tariffs. Thank you for your consideration of our comments.

In the letter, Apple calls itself a “proud U.S. company”, outlining a variety of contributions it has made over the years. It also calls out the fact that Apple is one of the largest job creators in the country. If that isn’t enough, Apple also calls itself the “largest corporate taxpayer” in the U.S. as well.

Apple is a proud U.S. company and one of the largest job creators in the United States. We are responsible for over 2 million jobs across all 50 states, including Apple’s direct employees, employees at our manufacturing and retail partners, and Americans who make their living in the vibrant and growing app economy.

In 2018, after the passage of tax reform in the U.S., we announced our intention to make a total direct contribution to the U.S. economy of over $350 billion over 5 years and we are pleased to report that we are on track to achieve this contribution. We are opening several new sites and adding new jobs to our U.S. employee base.

Apple is also the largest U.S. corporate taxpayer to the U.S. Treasury and pays billions more each year in local property, sales, and employee taxes.

Finally, Apple’s products are used by American families, students, businesses, government agencies, schools, and hospitals to communicate, teach, improve health outcomes, and enhance creativity and enterprise.

Of course, this is not the first time that iPhones and the Mac notebook lineup have been called out in terms of tariffs. Back in November of last year, for instance, both product lineups were pointed at by Trump himself, saying that future tariffs could be placed on iPhones and Macs.

At the time of publication, the Trump administration has not announced the latest round of tariffs just yet, and it looks like Apple, along with other companies, will continue to rally against the idea in an effort to stop them from going into effect at all.