Image: Connor Jewiss / Foundry
While it appeared for a while that Apple might escape the long arm of the tariff for at least a while, President Trump on Friday escalated his war against overseas manufacturing by targeting Apple and only Apple. In a post to his Truth Social account, Trump threatened Apple with an alarming 25 percent tariff if it doesn’t shift production of the iPhone to the U.S.
The tirade comes just weeks before Apple is going to hold its annual WWDC keynote, and as production is nearing for the iPhone 17, due to launch in September.
“I have long ago informed Tim Cook of Apple that I expect their iPhones that will be sold in the United States of America will be manufactured and built in the United States, not India, or anyplace else,” Trump wrote. “If that is not the case, a Tariff of at least 25% must be paid by Apple to the U.S. Thank your [sic] for your attention to this matter!”
Following a trip to the Middle East where Trump was showered with praise and gifted a luxury jet, Trump said he had told Tim Cook, “I don’t want you building in India.” Apple is shifting production to India to reduce its dependency on China, which received the brunt of Trump’s tariff ire. The shift to India is expected to move all U.S.-bound iPhones away from China by the end of 2026.
Cook has repeatedly said the U.S. doesn’t have enough skilled labor to build the iPhone. As he explained in 2017, iPhones “require really advanced tooling, and the precision that you have to have in tooling and working with the materials we do is state of the art… And the tooling skill is very deep [in China].”
Apple makes very few products in the U.S., but earlier this year announced a $500 billion investment in its home country. However, while that investment will yield a new U.S. factory in Houston, it will “produce servers that support Apple Intelligence, the personal intelligence system that helps users write, express themselves, and get things done,” rather than consumer products.
Apple has not responded to Trump’s screed. It’s not clear why Trump didn’t include Google, which also manufactures its Pixel phones in China and India, in the demands.
Apple is expected to launch four new iPhones in September, including a new ultra-thin model, the iPhone 17 Air. Additionally, it reportedly has several new models on course for 2026 and 2027, including its first folding phone and a curved, all-glass 20th anniversary model.
Author: Michael Simon, Executive Editor, Macworld
Michael Simon has been covering Apple for more than 20 years. He started covering rumors with Spymac when the iPod was the iWalk, and has owned nearly every iPhone Apple has ever made. He lives in Connecticut with his wife, son, and far too many gadgets.
