Tariffs, a 'Tax on the Consumer,' Could Stifle Economic Growth, Apple CEO Says
Tariffs "show up as a tax on the consumer and wind up resulting in lower economic growth” that can sometimes bring about "significant risk of unintended consequences,” Apple CEO Tim Cook said in Q&A on the company’s quarterly earnings call on July 31. Several trade agreements “are in need of modernizing,” but in most situations, “tariffs are not the approach to doing that,” Cook said. Risks of macroeconomic issues such as an economic slowdown or currency fluctuations related to tariffs are difficult to quantify, “and we're not even trying to,” Cook said. None of Apple’s products was affected by the U.S. tariff on steel and aluminum, which took effect in June, nor two other Section 301 lists totaling about $50 billion in goods from China that were implemented.
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Apple is evaluating the most recent proposed tariff, including goods valued at $200 billion, and will share its views of it with the Trump administration before the comment period ends, Cook said. He cited a “tedious process … because you not only have to analyze the revenue products, which are a bit more straightforward to analyze, but you also have to analyze the purchases that you're making through other companies that are not related to revenue.” Those could include data centers, he said. But Apple is “optimistic” about a positive resolution “because there is an inescapable mutuality between the U.S. and China that sort of serves as a magnet to bring both countries together,” Cook said.