Trump to announce semiconductor tariffs in the coming weeks

Friday 15 August 2025 - 16:30

U.S. President Donald Trump announced on Friday that he plans to unveil new tariffs on semiconductors in the “next week or the following week,” ahead of his trip to Alaska to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin.

“I will announce new tariffs next week or the week after, on steel and, I think, on semiconductors,” Trump said before boarding Air Force One. “It will start at a lower rate to give manufacturers time to relocate here, and then it will become very high. If they don’t produce here, they will face a hefty surcharge.”

Trump presents these tariffs as a strategy to encourage reshoring of factories, especially in sectors he considers strategic, such as semiconductors, steel and aluminum, automotive, and pharmaceuticals.

“They will all come because they want to avoid tariffs. If they don’t settle here, in some cases they will have to pay 200% or 300%—I haven’t checked the exact rates yet,” he added, without specifying which sectors he was referring to.

Markets reacted with caution. Shares of Nvidia and AMD, two major semiconductor manufacturers, fell 1.37% and 1.60% respectively on Wall Street on Friday morning.

Trump had previously indicated a desire to impose a 100% tariff on semiconductors, though the start date for the measure has not yet been announced. He also plans to levy additional tariffs on pharmaceutical products, initially at a low rate, which could rise to 150% within a year and eventually reach 250%.

Currently, a 50% tariff on steel imports has been in effect in the U.S. since March, and the White House has not signaled any immediate increase.