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Trump exempts phones, computers, chips from new tariffs

No, @Juks claim appears to be false. The codes exempted are not specific to manufacturers but cover broad classes of products. This turns out to be what we all thought it was: Donald Trump once again being forced to walk back his stupid decisions. It will happen again and again as he drops tariffs and exempts more and more products.
Yeah, I saw your post. It wouldn't surprise me if Trump exempted only American companies or only his donors.

Smartphones are also produced in India and Vietnam. China, India and Vietnam account for 80% of the world's smartphone production with China at 50%, India 20 and Vietnam 10.

There will be no army of millions of humans putting screws into iPhones coming to America. The administration has become a parody of SNL.
 
Did my own homework and it turns out that your claim is a lie.

The product codes exempt are broad and do not discriminate by manufacturer. All smartphones are exempted whether it be Apple, Samsung or anybody else’s. Your claim that this was a move by some companies to damage other companies turns out to be false.
I appreciate that you did the homework, but let’s be precise. You said:

"All smartphones are exempted whether it be Apple, Samsung or anybody else’s."

That’s only technically correct, not practically. The HTSUS code 8517.13.00 (smartphones) is indeed broad. But the tariff exemption is conditional, and here’s the key: To actually benefit from the exemption, importers must declare the matching secondary code (e.g. 9903.01.32) — and they have to do it correctly, on time, and in full compliance with US Customs procedures.

This is not plug-and-play. If a Samsung importer:
  • Misses the filing window
  • Has inconsistencies in documentation
  • Or routes goods from China without perfect classification
…they pay the full 145% reciprocal tariff. Apple, on the other hand, has a direct access to CBP policy shaping. They design their compliance pipelines before the policy hits. That’s what makes the system functionally discriminatory, even if the wording is neutral.

So no, the claim isn’t false. It reflects how US trade policy under Trump has been designed to reward those inside the loop, and let everyone else sink or swim.

And as I said previously, if I can figure it out, so can China…
 
I was simply making a personal observation that it's changed the way I "see" you as a poster, someone whom I used to like to engage with. I was reading along, realizing you put that in every comment where you mention Trump now.

I know Trump uses name calling (much less so in his second term) and it's not something I admire about him or something I do. But it sure as heck wasn't going to convince me to vote for Joe Biden or Kamala Harris, lol. Those votes were a binary choice only. There are many more options than 2 when it comes to choosing posters on a forum to enjoy engaging with.

As far as the points you make, for me they've been overshadowed by your odd addiction to referring to Trump as "Donnie Boy". But it's no big deal. You have plenty of others to engage with and so do I. It's just something that hit me as I was reading in this forum today and found myself thinking - hmmm, that's too bad in that I used to enjoy that poster. Now, I can't help but view your posts and you in a new way.
See @ElChupacabra? She cannot say an ill thing about Donald Trump. She’s literally incapable of it. The farthest she was able to go was to say that the name-calling is not something she admires when it comes to Donald Trump, but when it comes to your posts, she has plenty of strong opinions about childishness and immaturity. This is why I think there is little long term value in engaging with a MAGA. Functionally speaking, they are more like photocopiers than human beings, taking inputs given to them by the media and replicating them in different arenas, nothing less, nothing more.

You will not find an example of @gbg3 directly speaking out against Donald John Trump against any of the following:

 
I think the market currently cares more about the 10 year treasury and job numbers. Low GDP seem to be priced in with the Atlanta Fed giving a heads up for the past month.

My portfolio is weighted more cautious and towards value and fixed income with some growth. I see no need to reach when I've already won the game.

The bolded shows just how dangerous and dire the situation has become.

The markets aren't focused as usual on earnings, employment, and GDP. Rather, they are worried about the faith & credit of the United States - itself.

Concerns over our standing in the world is overshadowing market fundamentals. That's pretty scary stuff.
 
I appreciate that you did the homework, but let’s be precise. You said:

"All smartphones are exempted whether it be Apple, Samsung or anybody else’s."

That’s only technically correct, not practically. The HTSUS code 8517.13.00 (smartphones) is indeed broad. But the tariff exemption is conditional, and here’s the key: To actually benefit from the exemption, importers must declare the matching secondary code (e.g. 9903.01.32) — and they have to do it correctly, on time, and in full compliance with US Customs procedures.

This is not plug-and-play. If a Samsung importer:
  • Misses the filing window
  • Has inconsistencies in documentation
  • Or routes goods from China without perfect classification
…they pay the full 145% reciprocal tariff. Apple, on the other hand, has a direct access to CBP policy shaping. They design their compliance pipelines before the policy hits. That’s what makes the system functionally discriminatory, even if the wording is neutral.

So no, the claim isn’t false. It reflects how US trade policy under Trump has been designed to reward those inside the loop, and let everyone else sink or swim.

And as I said previously, if I can figure it out, so can China…
What makes you think Apple can do something that SEA cannot?
 
I'm fairly certain that a lot of Trumpers have moved to more echo chamber friendly forums.
I've thought of it. But that's not what I want. I like a tough enviornment - keeps me from being sloppy and not doing my research.
Because i WILL get challenged on 1/2 baked posts
Ya the TDS is annoying, but it's just a reflection of our politics anyways

I keep my head down, engage in ideas - and dont worry about what others do -other then replies
No angst, no getting upset, just The Moving Finger writes; and, having writ, Moves on
 
Everyone is uncertain at the moment. Markets are forvward looking, so think waiting for the smoke to clear to get a better view is the wise choice.

We're 3 years out from retiring. Not going to gamble with gains we've made the last two years. We're down 8% for the year which is substantial.

The last two years were a Godsend. I'd guard those gains with my life. It's not easing accruing wealth and capital.
 
Do you really think this is part of the “art of the deal”?

I really think that there’s no way Trump granted any exemptions without getting something out of it, correct. He’s a narcissist who isn’t just going to randomly capitulate/forfeit without having something he can declare victory about.

After all, he’d stubbornly do whatever he feels like doing well beyond the point that the world burns down around him, wouldn’t you agree?
 
I started following the growth and development of China back in 2003 or 2004. I knew then the GWOT was idiotic, and everything the US has done since then has made the US weaker over time. Relying on the wealth generated in the 1980s and the USD status as the reserve currency to maintain its status

One of the U.S.' biggest mistakes was not pursuing IP protection early on. The genie should have been capped from the get-go.
 
I'm fairly certain that a lot of Trumpers have moved to more echo chamber friendly forums.
Long term, it’s the only model that works for a MAGA. Since they live in a different reality than the rest of the human population, where facts work differently (e.g. Haitian immigrants eat cats, windmills cause cancer and so forth) normal human beings cannot actually engage in debate with a MAGA because there is no common basis to start from. They’re destined to engage only with those who share their view of Donald Trump being the only source of Truth.
 
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What an idiot. One of Trump's many rationales for this trade war was that we needed to reshore our electronics production for national security purposes. Do we no longer need to do that?

We need to take away the president's ability to impose tariffs. That worked reasonably well in the past, but it rests on the assumption that the president isn't a mad king. Let Congress control this instead. The legislative branch is far too weak anyway.
 
I would say a country who is attempting to spread their ambitous goal of Beijing’s dominance where an iron fisted, autocratic rule with state surveillance, censorship and political repression is magnitudes worse wouldn't you?

I would certainly agree but I think you might be a bit challenged to find current agreement from the Canadians on this forum and also from many American leftists. China (pro-China), Walmart, and chaos are their new "narratives".
Sometimes. actually often, I wonder if Trumpers have lost their ability to think rationally.

Apparently it is AOK to have the US work on a trade deal with China but not any other country. What makes them think Americans are better at negotiating a fair deal with China , eyes wide open , than anyone else? In fact I would suggest Trump has shown himself not to be competent in that regard.
 
I really think that there’s no way Trump granted any exemptions without getting something out of it, correct. He’s a narcissist who isn’t just going to randomly capitulate/forfeit without having something he can declare victory about.

After all, he’d stubbornly do whatever he feels like doing well beyond the point that the world burns down around him, wouldn’t you agree?

lol.

Okay,
 
Sometimes. actually often , I wonder if Trumpers have lost their ability to think rationally.

Apparently it is AOK to have the US work on a trade deal with China but not any other country. What makes them think Americans are better at negotiating a fair deal with China , eyes wide open , than anyone else? In fact I would suggest Trump shown himself not to be competent in that regard.
It’s impossible to demonstrate the ability to think rationally if the facts one starts with are themselves a fiction. The MAGA you reference are required to believe a slew of untruths from Haitian immigrants in Ohio eating cats to windmills causing cancer, out of loyalty to their lord and savior. If that is the reality they live in, if that is the truth that grounds them, then how can we ever expect them to “think” like the rest of us do?

Can we even expect them to think, when all they’re really doing is taking talking points from one form of media then replicating them in another? They’re more like an automaton than a rational, thinking sentience.
 
The last two years were a Godsend. I'd guard those gains with my life. It's not easing accruing wealth and capital.
We discussed pulling all of it out of stocks. We already have enough if you include home equity. Honestly, my wife currently wants us to.
 
Exactly.

No matter what Trump now does to "make nice", the world will not forget and - behind closed doors - will not be planning "nice" back.

I think the world is looking for more neutrality and hoping it can talk both the US and China out of a disastrous economic and diplomatic war, but we really should stop calling this a trade war - it is well beyond that where the US (MAGA, actually) and China are concerned. A trade war is typically fought to resolve differences over economics (i.e., economic cheating, dumping...that sort of thing). A trade war would be fought to resolve, say, some offense that we accused China of that couldn't otherwise be resolved to our satisfaction by entities like WTO.

At minimum, this is an attempt by the United States at economic *and* political containment. The United States is not just attempting to disrupt trade between the US and China (to the extent we can), it is really more of an attempt now to compel many other nations to work with us to isolate and economically injure China, to box them in, and even push them back out of Africa, out of South America, out of Europe and Asia. This is a full-on schoolyard lunge and attempted tackle by the United States.

The rest of the world is not going to just side with the United States. We've proven to them in just a matter of 3 months that we cannot be trusted with that kind of power. In the coming days and weeks, we'll hear a lot about how trading partners have no choice and that the US holds all the cards, and that they can either side with us or side with the enemy, and if they do the latter there will be hell to pay.

If the current administration follows through with threats to weaponize our current economic trade, our resources, and other forms of power - if we actually do it without hesitation or exemption, it would take what is now arguably a monumental folly and turn it into the worst foreign policy decision in the history of this country, and we've made quite a few of these the last 20 years.

I am not seeing any signs at all of grand macro-strategy no matter how his apologists frame what he's doing now. To be sure, there is grand macro-strategy to be had -- to the benefit of his legacy, no less. But we've seen his act in the first term and now even more so in this one. He is rash. He is impulsive. He doesn't listen. If you give him a menu of options, he will choose the worst one because it's the one that has the most shock value and is guaranteed to cause the most headlines and disruption. That is his alpha and omega. And he has surrounded himself within his administration and within Congress and in his own version of Sputnik that we call Fox News with people who refuse to challenge him or correct him.

We're supposedly 90 days away from countries having to make a difficult choice between the United States and the "DragonBear" (aka China and Russia). I would say it's more like we may have 90 days left before Trump pulls the levers of power in ways that erode US global power and prestige - not to mention domestic wealth - with shocking rapidity. I can only hope that markets shock some sense into those around him and members of Congress enough to force their hand. Otherwise, we're ****ed.
 
Sometimes. actually often , I wonder if Trumpers have lost their ability to think rationally.

The answer is yes.

They bombard themselves with propaganda every day.
 
What an idiot. One of Trump's many rationales for this trade war was that we needed to reshore our electronics production for national security purposes. Do we no longer need to do that?

We need to take away the president's ability to impose tariffs. That worked reasonably well in the past, but it rests on the assumption that the president isn't a mad king. Let Congress control this instead. The legislative branch is far too weak anyway.
Trump is taking advantage of emergency powers which are statutory. Congress needs to revoke all acts and statutes that delegate emergency power to the president. Congress can assume this responsibility itself.
 
What makes you think Apple can do something that SEA cannot?
Apple has direct lines to CBP, USTR, and White House staff. Tim Cook has met with Trump multiple times and helped shape policy conversations and Apple’s legal team has likely been involved in drafting the exemption itself. SEA, as a subsidiary of a South Korean company, has far less political access, even if it maintains a US presence.

It’s not about the written rules. It’s about who gets waved through at the gate.
 
I used to like to occasionally get into a conversation/debate with you - but your new and constant "Donnie Boy" thing has given you a whole new look as a poster. I doubt you care but you know how it is - some posters are just better, more mature, and more willing to leave that childish stuff aside.

Gbg3, look what Trump is doing and what's occurring. How can we not call him & it out for what it is?
 
lol.

Okay,

I’ll take that as an admission that you cannot counter my logic about Trump…because it’s literally the same as your logic about Trump.

Or are you now arguing that he decided to randomly stop being a stubborn narcissist “just cuz?”
 
Any over/under guesses on Apple and Nividia being + 8% Monday?

I’d buy some Micron over either of them. It stands to benefit even more. It’s super cheap for its financials right now.
 
Trump is taking advantage of emergency powers which are statutory. Congress needs to revoke all acts and statutes that delegate emergency power to the president. Congress can assume this responsibility itself.
Agreed. It sucks because it will probably slow down the response if we have a genuine emergency, but I guess that's just what happens when the voters elect a child. That's a better outcome than letting Trump do whatever he wants.
 
I’ll take that as an admission that you cannot counter my logic about Trump…because it’s literally the same as your logic about Trump.

Or are you now arguing that he decided to randomly stop being a stubborn narcissist “just cuz?”
A narcissist would have told us about a deal five minutes after it was made.
 
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