Trump’s tariffs start on April 9. While China is expected to be hit with 104% of tariffs, other Asian countries have also been impacted. To help mitigate some of the impact, Apple rushed over five planes full of iPhones and other premium devices during the final week of March to stock up its inventory.
A senior Indian official confirmed the story to The Times of India. According to the publication, the urgent shipments were made to “avoid a new 10% reciprocal tariff imposed by Trump’s administration.”
The report says Apple moved inventory from manufacturing centers in India and China to the US, even though we’re in the midst of a slow shipping season. “Factories in India and China and other key locations had been shipping products to the US in anticipation of the higher tariffs,” according to one source.
Normally, this is a slow season for Apple despite the release of the new iPhone 16e, M3 iPad Air, iPad 11, M4 MacBook Air, and M3 Ultra/M4 Max Mac Studio. But Apple Stores were reportedly crowded over the weekend amid fears that the company could soon be forced by Trump’s policies to increase its prices.
As Bloomberg‘s Mark Gurman and Rthvika Suvarna reported, US customers were rushing to get new iPhones as though Apple might announce price hikes in a matter of days. The report revealed that over the weekend, Apple Stores felt like they typically do during the holiday season. One employee told the publication: “Almost every customer asked me if prices were going to go up soon.” Another said: “People are just rushing in worried and asking questions.”
For the time being, Apple isn’t expected to raise its product prices. However, the iPhone 17 will likely be impacted by these tariffs if the US and China don’t reach an agreement by September. An analyst recently predicted that the most expensive next-gen iPhone model could cost up to $2,300. Still, it’s unclear how much of the impact Apple is willing to absorb itself.
