Overview
- A Federal Register notice imposes China-specific semiconductor tariffs now but sets the effective rate at zero for roughly 18 months.
- The rate is slated to rise on June 23, 2027, with the exact percentage to be announced at least 30 days beforehand.
- Apple receives short-term relief because many supporting chips it buys from China would otherwise face higher import costs.
- Apple’s A- and M-series processors are produced by TSMC in Taiwan, while components such as power management and display driver chips from China would be covered once rates increase.
- Setting the rate at zero preserves the legal framework to raise duties later and gives manufacturers time to plan after earlier proposals considered much steeper tariffs.