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Your favorite iPhone could soon become much pricier, thanks to tariffs. U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a series of sweeping tariffs on countries around the world that could drastically alter the landscape of global trade, and consumer goods like iPhones could be among the hardest hit, analysts said on Thursday, with increases of 30% to 40% if the company were to pass on the cost to consumers. Most iPhones are still made in China, which was hit with a 54% tariff. If those levies persist, Apple has a tough choice: absorb the extra expense or pass it on to customers. Shares of the company closed down 9.3% on Thursday, hitting their worst day since March 2020. Apple sells more than 220 million iPhones a year; its biggest markets include the United States, China and Europe. The cheapest iPhone 16 model was launched in the U.S. with a sticker price of $799, but could cost as much as $1,142, per calculations based on projections from analysts at Rosenblatt Securities, who say the cost could rise by 43% – if Apple is able to pass that on to consumers. A more expensive iPhone 16 Pro Max, with a 6.9-inch display and 1 terabyte of storage, which currently retails at $1599, could cost nearly $2300 if a 43% increase were to pass to consumers. Trump imposed tariffs on a wide range of Chinese imports in his first term as president to pressure U.S. companies to bring manufacturing either back to the United States or to nearby countries such as Mexico, but Apple secured exemptions or waivers for several products. This time, he has not yet granted any exemptions. “This whole China tariff thing is playing out right now completely contrary to our expectation that American icon Apple would be kid-gloved, like last time,” Barton Crockett, analyst at Rosenblatt Securities, said in a note. The iPhone 16e, launched in February as a cheaper entry point for Apple’s suite of artificial-intelligence features, costs $599. A 43% price hike could push that cost to $856. Prices of other Apple devices could jump as well. Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Many customers pay for their phones over a period of two or three years through contracts with their cellular providers. However, other analysts noted that iPhone sales have been floundering in the company’s major markets, as Apple Intelligence, a suite of features that helps summarize notifications, rewrite emails and give users access to ChatGPT, has failed to enthuse buyers. Expert reviews have suggested that the features, while innovative, do not provide enough of a compelling reason to justify upgrading to newer models. The stagnation in demand could put additional pressure on Apple’s bottom line, especially if costs rise due to tariffs. Angelo Zino, equity analyst at CFRA Research, said the company will have a tough time passing on more than 5% to 10% of the cost to consumers. “We expect Apple to hold off on any major increases on phones until this fall when its iPhone 17 is set to launch, as it is typically how it handles planned price hikes.” Even with some production moving to Vietnam and India, most iPhones are still made in China, and those countries were not spared from tariffs either, with Vietnam getting a 46% levy and India’s coming in at 26%. Apple would need to raise its prices by at least 30% on average to offset import duties, according to Counterpoint Research co-founder Neil Shah. A potentially sharp price hike could dampen demand for the smartphone and give South Korea’s Samsung Electronics an edge, as the Asian country faces lower tariffs than China, where all iPhones sold in the U.S. are made. “Our quick math on Trump’s tariff Liberation Day suggests this could blow up Apple, potentially costing the company up to $40 billion,” Rosenblatt Securities’ Crockett noted, adding that negotiations between Apple, China and the White House are likely. “It’s hard for us to imagine Trump blowing up an American iconbut this looks pretty tough.” Akash Sriram, Reuters
Category:
E-Commerce
Parts of the Midwest and South faced the possibility of torrential rains and life-threatening flash floods Friday, while many communities were still reeling from tornadoes that destroyed whole neighborhoods and killed at least seven people.Forecasters warned of catastrophic weather on the way, with round after round of heavy rains expected in the central U.S. through Saturday. Satellite imagery showed thunderstorms lined up like freight trains to take the same tracks over communities in Arkansas, Tennessee, and Kentucky, according to the national Weather Prediction Center in Maryland.The bull’s-eye centered on a swath along the Mississippi River and included the more than 1.3 million people around Memphis.More than 90 million people were at risk of severe weather from Texas to Minnesota to Maine, according to the Oklahoma-based Storm Prediction Center.Those killed in the initial wave of storms that spawned powerful tornadoes on Wednesday and early Thursday were in Tennessee, Missouri, and Indiana. They included a Tennessee man and his teen daughter whose home was destroyed, and a man whose pickup struck downed power lines in Indiana. In Missouri, Garry Moore, who was chief of the Whitewater Fire Protection District, died while likely trying to help a stranded motorist, according to Highway Patrol spokesperson Sgt. Clark Parrott.Tennessee Gov. Bill Lee said entire neighborhoods in the hard-hit town of Selmer were “completely wiped out” and said it was too early to know whether there were more deaths as searches continued. He warned people across the state to stay vigilant with more severe weather predicted.“Don’t let your guard down,” he said during a Thursday evening news conference. “Don’t stop watching the weather. Don’t stop preparing yourself. Have a plan.”With flattened homes behind him, Dakota Woods described seeing the twister come through Selmer.“I was walking down the street,” Woods said Thursday. “Next thing you know, I look up, the sky is getting black and blacker, and it’s lighting up green lights, and it’s making a formation of a twister or tornado.” Flash flood threat looms over many states By late Thursday, extremely heavy rain was falling in parts of southeastern Missouri and western Kentucky and causing “very dangerous/life threatening flash flooding” in some spots, according to the National Weather Service.Heavy rains were expected to continue there and in other parts of the region in the coming days and could produce dangerous flash floods capable of sweeping away cars. The potent storm system will bring “significant, life-threatening flash flooding” each day, the National Weather Service said.Water rescue teams and sandbagging operations were being staged across the region, and the Federal Emergency Management Agency was ready to distribute food, water, cots, and generators.Water rescues were already underway in flooded parts of Nashville, where the rain could persist for days after an unnerving period of tornado warnings that drained the batteries of some city sirens, the fire department said.Western Kentucky prepared for record rain and flooding in places that normally do not get inundated, Gov. Andy Beshear said. At least 25 state highways were swamped, mostly in the west, according to a statement from his office Thursday.Flash flooding is particularly worrisome in rural areas of the state where water can quickly rush off the mountains into the hollows. Less than four years ago, dozens died in flooding across eastern Kentucky.Extreme flooding across the corridor that includes Louisville, Kentucky, and Memphis, which have major cargo hubs, could also lead to shipping and supply chain delays, said Jonathan Porter, chief meteorologist at AccuWeather.Forecasters attributed the violent weather to warm temperatures, an unstable atmosphere, strong wind shear, and abundant moisture streaming from the Gulf. Tornadoes leave path of damage, and more could be coming Under darkened skies Thursday morning, the remains of a used car dealership in Selmer stood roofless and gutted, with debris scattered across the car lot and wrapped around mangled trees. Some homes were ripped to their foundations in the Tennessee town, where three tornadoes were suspected of touching down.The Tennessee Highway Patrol released video of lightning illuminating the sky as first responders scoured the ruins of a home, looking for anyone trapped.In neighboring Arkansas, a tornado near Blytheville lofted debris at least 25,000 feet (7.6 kilometers) high, according to weather service meteorologist Chelly Amin. The state’s emergency management office reported damage in 22 counties from tornadoes, wind, hail, and flash flooding.The home where Danny Qualls spent his childhood but no longer lives was flattened by a tornado in northeast Arkansas.“My husband has been extremely tearful and emotional, but he also knows that we have to do the work,” Rhonda Qualls said. “He was in shock last night, cried himself to sleep.”Workers on bulldozers cleared rubble along the highway that crosses through Lake City, where a tornado with winds of 150 mph (241 kph) sheared roofs off homes, collapsed brick walls, and tossed cars into trees.Mississippi’s governor said at least 60 homes were damaged. And in far western Kentucky, four people were injured while taking shelter in a vehicle under a church carport, according to the emergency management office in Ballard County. Walker IV reported from Selmer, Tennessee, and Seewer from Toledo, Ohio. Associated Press writers Andrew DeMillo in Little Rock, Arkansas; Jonathan Mattise in Nashville, Tennessee, Seth Borenstein in Washington; Isabella O’Malley in Philadelphia; Kathy McCormack in Concord, New Hampshire; Bruce Schreiner in Louisville, Kentucky; Jeff Martin in Atlanta; Hallie Golden in Seattle; and Ed White in Detroit contributed. Adrian Sainz, George Walker IV and John Seewer, Associated Press
Category:
E-Commerce
Yesterday, U.S. stock markets, and stock markets around the world, dramatically fell during the first trading session after President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday tariffs on nearly every country in the world. As noted by PBS, the S&P 500 plummeted 4.8%, the Dow Jones Industrial Average sank 4%, and the tech-heavy Nasdaq plunged 6%. But many of Americas biggest companies saw their stock price fall much worse than the low single digits. Yet, more surprisingly, there was one U.S. company that saw its shares surge nearly 12% on the Trump tariff news. Heres what you need to know. Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company surges on Trump tariff news The biggest winner yesterday in the aftermath of Trumps tariff announcements was the Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company (Nasdaq: GT), according to data from Yahoo Finance. Goodyear Tire saw its shares spike by 11.73% to close at $10.19. That is a share price Goodyear has not seen since late February. But why did Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company surge when most other American companies fall? As noted by Investing.com, Goodyears stock price surge likely has a lot to do with the fact that the company may be impacted littleor at least to a lesser extentthan its competitors. Thats because Goodyear has a relatively large manufacturing presence in America compared to other tire manufacturers. Investing.com also noted a recent Deutsche Bank report that highlighted a majority of Goodyears business came from selling replacement tires instead of tires to car manufacturers for new vehicles. Trumps tariffs will raise the prices of cars sold in America by thousands of dollars, leading to many Americans holding off on buying new vehicles and instead retaining their current ones for longer. That means those Americans will likely spend additional funds to maintain their current cars, such as buying new tires for them. Goodyears existing U.S. manufacturing base means the company also has to rely less on tire imports. One of the hardest hit countries yesterday in Trumps tariff announcements was Thailand, which is a big tire producer. According to a recent Research and Markets report from 2024, Thailands tire industry produced 58 million tires in 2023. On Wednesday, Trump hit Thai exports to the United States with a 36% tariff. However, while Goodyear was yesterdays biggest winner, it should be noted that in premarket trading this morning, at the time of this writing, GTs share price is currently trading down 6%. After Goodyear, Lamb Weston Holdings, Inc. (NYSE: LW) was the next-biggest winner, with its stock rising 10.01% yesterday. However, its stock price rise may have more to do with its Q3 earnings beat yesterday (via Zacks) than anything else. Biggest losers: apparel and home goods companies Despite a couple of low double-digit gainers yesterday, most well-known stocks took a beating. According to data from Yahoo Finance, these were among the worst hit: RH (NYSE: RH): down 40% V.F. Corporation (NYSE: VFC): down 28.74% Five Below, Inc. (Nasdaq: FIVE): down 27.81% Wayfair Inc. (NYSE: W): down 25.59% SharkNinja, Inc. (NYSE: SN): down 21.42% The Gap, Inc. (NYSE: GAP): down 20.29% Under Armour, Inc. (NYSE: UAA): down 18.79% Urban Outfitters, Inc. (Nasdaq: URBN): down 18.37% The companies listed above fell into two categories: home goods resellers and apparel makers. These companies were likely hit so hard because home goods and apparel companies tend to source their goods from countries that were among the hardest hit by Trumps tariffs. Those countries include China (54% tariff), Cambodia (49%), Vietnam (46%), Bangladesh (37%), and India (26%). Other notable companies that were among the biggest losers include the automotive e-commerce platform Carvana Co. (NYSE: CVNA), which was down 19.68%. Scientific instrument makers MKS Instruments, Inc. (Nasdaq: MKSI) and Coherent Corp. (NYSE: COHR) were also down 20.93% and 20.18%, respectively. Computer maker Dell Technologies Inc. (NYSE: DELL) also fell 18.99%. Big Tech also had a bad day However, while home goods and apparel companies were among the hardest hit, Americas biggest tech companies didnt fare well either. Heres how Americas biggest tech household names performed: Alphabet Inc. (Nasdaq: GOOG): down 3.92% Amazon.com, Inc. (Nasdaq: AMZN): down 8.98% Apple Inc. (Nasdaq: AAPL): down 9.25% Meta Platforms, Inc. (Nasdaq: META): down 8.96% Microsoft Corporation (Nasdaq: MSFT): down 2.36% NVIDIA Corporation (Nasdaq: NVDA): down 7.81% Shopify Inc. (Nasdaq: SHOP): down 18.24% Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company Limited (NYSE: TSM): down 7.64% Tesla, Inc. (Nasdaq: TSLA): down 5.47% Unsurprisingly, the hardest hit of the tech companies above were those that rely heavily on Asian supply chains to make their goods. East Asian and Southeast Asian nations were among the hardest hit by Trump’s tariffs. Shopify was also hit particularly hard, likely not just due to the tariffs but also due to the Trump administration announcing the end of the de minimis rule that previously allowed packages valued less than $800 to be levy-exempt when imported into the United States. That de minimus rule is now being scrapped, which means even smaller goods will see levies placed on them. Markets today Those hoping that the stock market crash experienced yesterday was over will likely be disappointed, at least as the way things stand at the time of this writing. Currently, in pre-market trading, S&P Futures are down another 2.15%, Dow Futures are down another 2.23%, and Nasdaq Futures are down another 2.34%. Many of the individual stocks listed above are also being hit hard again. In pre-market trading at the time of this writing, RH is down another 8.2%, FIVE is down another 8.9%, W is down another 10%, TSLA is down another 5.4%, SHOP is down another 6.5%, TSM is down another 5.5%, and AAPL is down another 5.1%.
Category:
E-Commerce
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