Fresh trouble for iPhone users as Trump threatens Apple; full details emerge

In a fresh wave of challenges for iPhone users, U.S. President Donald Trump has issued a significant ultimatum regarding Apple Inc.

According to Trump, the tech giant would be subjected to a hefty tariff of 25 percent on all iPhones manufactured overseas and imported into the United States. This move is part of a broader strategy aimed at reshaping trade relations and encouraging domestic production.

The implications of such a tariff could have far-reaching effects on both Apple and its loyal customer base, raising concerns about affordability and accessibility of iPhones in the US market.

He later added that Samsung and other phone makers would face a similar tariff, “otherwise it wouldn’t be fair”. The tariffs would likely take effect at the end of June, he said.

Trump posted the comments on Apple on his social network Truth Social. “I have long ago informed [CEO] Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhone’s that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else,” he said. “If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the U.S.,” the president wrote.

His comments on Samsung “and anybody that makes that product” were added later in response to questions at the White House, the Wall Street Journal reports.

Apple investment in US
Cook met with Trump at the White House this week, according to a White House official. Apple has previously pledged to spend USD 500 billion on its operations in the US. However, this is largely with or by suppliers, and Apple continues to manufacture iPhones in Asia.

The US government previously exempted smartphones from most of its tariffs on China. In response to the threat of a China-US trade war, Apple started early this year shifting more production to India and Vietnam with its partner Foxconn in order to avoid any impact.

The US is Apple’s biggest market for iPhones, and the company accounts for over half of the smartphone market there.

According to figures from Counterpoint Research, Apple had a 57 percent share of the US market in Q1 2025, followed by Samsung with 25 percent and Lenovo (Motorola) with 11 percent.

Shipments of iPhones and other smartphones made in China to the US fell to their lowest level since 2011 in April, according to Chinese customs data reported separately by Bloomberg.

Smartphone exports were down 72 percent to less than USD 700 million during the month, compared to a 21 percent fall in overall Chinese exports to the US. Smartphones were the number one export from China to the US in the year 2024.