Will the iPhone be more expensive because of Donald Trump?

For Sébastien Jean, economist and professor at the National Conservatory of Arts and Crafts, questioned by The worldthe answer is clear: “Yes, undoubtedly, if the decree is applied as is.” The expert specifies that “The most likely is that the United States applies customs to China, which will now be increased by 54 %!”

Apple would have a strategy to limit the increase

However, the economist brings nuances about the magnitude of the increase. The central question relates to the price at which this rate will be applied. According to him, Apple could adopt a strategy to limit the impact of customs duties by separating intellectual property from the material object.

Since intellectual property is intangible, it would not be subject to customs duties and could be billed separately. In this case, the material object would represent only a total fraction of the product. If the fraction is approximately 20 %, the duty of customs applied would be only 10 %.

If we take into account the distribution margin, very high at Apple, Sébastien Jean believes that “The final price increases, in this case, only 5 % to 10 %”.

The situation takes place in a context of trade tensions launched by the Trump administration. The American president presented a table during his speech, which shows the new customs duties according to the trade deficit of the United States with each country. As Arnaud Leparmentier explains, correspondent for World In New York, “The goal is to tax the countries as much as possible with strong surpluses”.

But the protectionist measures of Donald Trump could have serious consequences on the world economy, with a possible “Protectionist contagion” According to experts. The impact would be direct on American and international consumers for many products, including the iPhone.