Apple could be staring down an economic disaster under Trump’s sweeping new global tariffs. On April 9, 2025, analyst Dan Ives from Wedbush Securities told CNN that an iPhone built in the U.S. could cost as much as $3,500.
That’s more than triple the current price, and the result of a total supply chain overhaul. iPhones are currently assembled mostly in China, with chips made in Taiwan and display panels sourced from South Korea. Relocating even 10% of the supply chain to the U.S. would take three years and cost Apple $30 billion, Ives said.
Trump’s new tariffs hit imports from China (54%), Vietnam (46%), and Cambodia (49%), all key players in Apple’s manufacturing pipeline. Even countries like India and Brazil, which Apple has considered for diversification, face 26% and 10% tariffs, respectively. Apple doesn’t have enough production capacity in those regions to replace Chinese output.
Apple has lost roughly 25% of its stock value since Trump took office in January 2025. Investors are spooked, and analysts are warning of sharp price increases on Apple products if the company shifts production or eats the added tariff costs.
Apple has already committed to investing $500 billion in the U.S. over four years in an attempt to expand domestic production. But according to Rosenblatt Securities, if Apple passed all the tariff costs onto consumers, iPhones could become 43% more expensive even without relocating manufacturing.
For now, iPhones are still assembled abroad. But with Trump’s trade war in full swing, and Apple caught directly in the middle, the cost of staying global, or going local, looks painful either way.
- Apple Is Training AI Without Your Data Ever Leaving Your iPhone - April 19, 2025
- Samsung Is Quietly Powering a Virtual Film Revolution at Twickenham Studios - April 18, 2025
- The Witcher 3 May Not Get Nintendo Switch 2 Release - April 17, 2025
