Don’t expect your Asus laptop to come from China anymore. The company has been migrating most of its US-bound manufacturing away from China in response to Trump’s tariffs.
“For both motherboards and PCs, we are expanding production bases in Southeast Asia beyond China. This would include sites in Thailand, Vietnam, and Indonesia,” Asus executives said in a translated earnings call on Wednesday. “At this point, over 90% of our production for these products has already been distributed to these new regions.”
In April, Trump threatened to impose tariffs as high as 145% on Chinese imports. That was mostly put on hold amid US-China trade talks, so the import rate is currently 30%. Thus far, negotiations have not yielded a deal, and Trump just extended the tariff pause until Nov. 10.
The PC industry has been able to dodge much of Trump’s trade war after the president exempted chips, computers, and phones from his reciprocal tariffs on foreign markets. In its earnings call, Asus said, most of its products “are still covered under the US-China exemption list.”
Still, the company noted that things could change. Last week, Trump said he’s planning a 100% tariff on foreign chips, which would likely ensnare computer, phone, and monitor imports as well.
Trump hasn’t provided details about the chip-focused tariffs will work. But the good news is that he appears to have created a carveout for companies investing in new US manufacturing. As a result, it’s possible Nvidia and Taiwan’s TSMC will be spared since both have recently announced billion-dollar investments in new US factories.
“As many of you know, TSMC manufactures a large share of chips used in our components through various suppliers,” Asus executives said. “So how those exemptions are calculated will matter. But again, we will need to wait for the official announcement.”
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Still, the company said it might need to raise prices if the “total cost elevation is still beyond what we can absorb” once Trump’s tariff policies are formalized. “Then we would inevitably need to pass some of that cost on, either to consumers or to distribution channels,” Asus executives said.
As for China, Trump in March also imposed a 20% tariff on Chinese imports that appears to have no exceptions. The White House might also revive a 25% tariff on Chinese-made graphics cards and motherboards later in September.
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About Michael Kan
Senior Reporter
