If you've been on the fence about building a new PC, you might want to act quickly. The United States is likely to resume the tariffs it had previously placed on Chinese-made PC components, and at 25%, you'll definitely see a difference if they come back into effect. The tariffs were initially established by the Trump administration, but were lifted in 2022 by the Biden White House to provide price relief for consumers during the pandemic. It's unclear exactly when they will be put back into place, but it's very likely sometime this year.
The issue involves two specific tariffs, which applied a 25% tariff to certain goods manufactured in China. The tariff text specifically refers to GPUs, printed circuit boards, and items including fans, fan hubs, LEDs, and logic boards. The tariffs were initially implemented as a deterrent against alleged Chinese theft of intellectual property and unfair trade policies. They were suspended in mid-2022, and the question of whether or when they would resume has been unclear until now.
This is from October 2023, which you might soon consider reasonable.
Credit: Newegg
Five months ago, the Biden administration asked the public for comment on whether to continue. With this comment period set to expire on May 31, the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) has announced that it will resume shortly. According According to PCMag, the USTR recommended maintaining the tariffs, implying that it is a done deal although the White House has not yet made it official. Reinforcing this idea are comments from the Consumer Technology Association, which, unsurprisingly, is against tariffs. One of his vice presidents told PCMag that the Biden administration will not eliminate tariffs, but will instead increase prices, indicating that the announcement is coming soon.
The original tariffs were temporarily lifted in 2022 due to the pandemic as they were negatively affecting consumers. The temporary status meant that they would one day resume and the government has been continually pushing back the date. Initially they were going to resume in December 2022, then in September 2023, then in December 2023 and now the final date is May 2024, so an imminent resumption is anticipated.
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