United States President Donald Trump’s administration has exempted smartphones, computers and several other electronic goods – including those made in China – from steep tariffs, offering major relief to technology firms such as Apple, Nvidia and Microsoft that depend on overseas manufacturing, reported Reuters.

Smartphones were the US’ top import from China in 2024, valued at 41.7 billion dollars, while laptops ranked second at 33.1 billion dollars, according to the US Census Bureau.

According to a notice published late on Friday by the United States Customs and Border Protection, products including smartphones, computer monitors, laptops, semiconductors, memory chips, disc drives and flat panel displays will not be subject to the new tariffs.

The exclusions, covering 20 product categories, are retroactive to April 5. For Chinese imports, the exclusions only apply to Trump’s “reciprocal” tariffs, which climbed to 125% this week. Washington’s prior 20% duties on all Chinese imports, which Trump has linked to the country’s alleged role in the US fentanyl crisis, remain in place, as do the baseline 10% tariffs on most countries.

The decision follows the Trump administration’s move on Wednesday to introduce a minimum tariff rate of 145% on Chinese imports. However, Friday’s exemption could ease costs for electronics made in other countries such as India and Taiwan. Apple, for instance, has ramped up production in India and recently used chartered cargo flights to ship 600 tons of iPhones to the US, Reuters reported.

Financial services firm Wedbush Securities estimated that 90% of Apple’s iPhone production and assembly takes place in China, reported CNN. On Saturday, its analysts called the tariff exclusion “the best news possible for tech investors”.

“Big Tech firms like Apple, Nvidia, Microsoft and the broader tech industry can breathe a huge sigh of relief this weekend into Monday,” the firm said in a statement. “A big step forward for US tech to get these exemptions and the most bullish news we could have heard this weekend… now onto the next step in negotiations on the broader China tariff war which will take a number of months at least.”

Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment by CNN while Nvidia and Microsoft declined to comment. Apple was estimated to have up to six weeks of inventory in the US, according to Counterpoint Research, and prices were expected to rise once that supply ran out.

The White House said the exclusions reflect Trump’s strategy to encourage technology firms to bring manufacturing jobs back to the US.

“President Trump has made it clear America cannot rely on China to manufacture critical technologies such as semiconductors, chips, smartphones, and laptops,” White House Press Secretary Karoline Leavitt said in a statement. “That’s why the President has secured trillions of dollars in U.S. investments from the largest tech companies in the world, including Apple, Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company, and Nvidia. At the direction of the President, these companies are hustling to onshore their manufacturing in the United States as soon as possible.”

Trump had told reporters on Friday that “there could be a couple of exceptions for obvious reasons, but I would say 10% is a floor” for tariffs.

Trump on Wednesday increased tariffs on China by 125%, while reducing the duties on imports from other countries to 10% for 90 days, to provide time for trade negotiations.

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