According to foreign media reports, U.S. President Donald Trump’s administration is mulling another round of semiconductor tariffs, potentially covering consumer products like laptops, gaming consoles, and servers. Experts say that the added costs could be passed on to consumers and inflate prices of electronics, while smaller supply chain players may struggle to shoulder the costs of moving operations or investing in the U.S. to avoid tariffs.

U.S. Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick reportedly favors linking the tariff exemptions available to foreign companies to the amount they invest in the United States, as a way of encouraging domestic production. However, the specific tariff rates and details have not yet been finalized.

Chai Huan-hsin (柴煥欣) from Cloud Express’ industry research institute said that whether the new tariff policy can be smoothly implemented remains an open question. Since electronic products vary greatly across brands and models, there is uncertainty on whether future tariffs will be based on chip value or applied as a flat rate based on the import price of the finished product.

Chai argued that tariffs on laptops, consoles, and servers, which are mostly assembled in Taiwan, China, ASEAN countries, and India, may push up retail prices and weaken U.S. consumer momentum. This may have a negative impact on both the American and global economy.

Chai noted that the primary goal behind past U.S. tariffs was to encourage the return of manufacturing to American soil, and that many players in the semiconductor and AI server supply chains have established operations in the U.S. Taiwanese manufacturers like TSMC, Foxconn, and Quanta, have recently expanded their U.S. presence and investments. However, laptops and gaming consoles involve a massive component supply chain, much of which consists of small and medium-sized enterprises. Chai said that if those companies are required to establish operations in the United States, many would likely struggle to shoulder the high operating costs and investment risks involved.