U.S. Commerce Secretary nominee Howard Lutnick speaks inside the Capital One arena on the inauguration day of Donald Trump’s second presidential term, in Washington, U.S., January 20, 2025.
Mike Segar | Reuters
President Donald Trump’s Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick suggested Sunday that the reciprocal tariff exemptions for some electronics may be short-lived, and said separate tariffs for these products are “coming soon.”
“They’re exempt from the reciprocal tariffs, but they’re included in the semiconductor tariffs, which are coming in probably a month or two,” Lutnick said on ABC News’ “This Week.”
“So this is not like a permanent sort of exemption. [Trump’s] just clarifying that these are not available to be negotiated away by countries,” he said.
Lutnick added: “These are things that are national security that we need to be made in America.”
Lutnick’s comments throw cold water on hopes that popular tech products made in China, such as computers, laptops, smartphones, and flat-panel TVs, would be spared from Trump’s 145% reciprocal tariffs — duties that raise prices for U.S. importers and are generally passed on to consumers.
They also add more confusion about Trump’s tariff policy, which has changed repeatedly. Democratic lawmakers on Sunday said the changes are causing “chaos” and a “crisis of credibility” for Trump.
The U.S. Customs and Border Protection late Friday evening announced exemptions for smartphones, computers, and other tech devices and components from Trump’s reciprocal tariffs. A 20% tariff on all Chinese goods remains in effect.
Lutnick on Sunday emphasized that the U.S. “can’t be beholden and rely upon foreign countries for fundamental things that we need.”
U.S. Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, in an attempt to clarify why the exemptions were made, said Sunday that they are “not really an exception,” even though the executive order Trump signed concerning the exemptions is titled in part “Clarification of Exceptions.”
“What happened is, this type of supply chain moved from the tariff regime for the global tariff, the reciprocal tariff, and it moved to the national security tariff regime,” Greer said on CBS News’ “Face the Nation.”
The reciprocal tariff exemptions initially had brought a sigh of relief for major tech companies, including Apple, which manufactures most of its products in China.
But Democratic Sen. Cory Booker of New Jersey said the confusion sowed by the Trump administration’s reversal late Friday on reciprocal tariffs on some electronics from China — and his sudden call on Wednesday for a 90-day pause in enforcing new tariffs on other countries — is harmful to the U.S.
“President Trump now has a crisis in credibility,” he said in an interview Sunday on NBC News’ “Meet the Press.” “We’re hearing from around the world. People just don’t know if they can trust him.”
Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., warned that the trade turmoil will deter businesses from investing in the U.S. “Right now what we’ve got is chaos,” she said Sunday on CNN’s “State of the Union.”
“Investors will not invest in the United States when Donald Trump is playing red light, green light with tariffs.”
