The U.S. government has delayed imposing tariffs on consumer graphics cards as they plan to get more "feedback" from the industry. For those who don't know, these tariffs as we call them have been a hotly debated topic since the Trump era, when the administration wanted to reduce the influence of Chinese hardware in the market.
It was proposed at the time that all hardware imported directly from China would face a 25% tariff, including graphics cards, motherboards and various devices. This means consumers will face an unexpected increase in component prices in the United States, however, the Biden administration has come to the rescue and only lifted the tariffs for a certain period of time.
This round of tariff increases was originally expected to start on January 1, 2024, but the government postponed it to May 31, 2024 due to a lack of cooperation from the industry. This is good news for consumers, as a 25% tariff would mean a significant increase in product prices, which is not an improvement given current market conditions. However, domestic trade groups in the United States were annoyed by the decision, claiming that it affected their business plans.
The price of high-end graphics cards such as NVIDIA GeForce RTX 4090 has been raised to around US$2,000 for various reasons. If the price increases by 25%, it will rise to US$2,500, which is unacceptable to people. Even entry-level products like the $299 RTX 4060 or the $269 RX7600 will have their base prices rising to $373 and $336 respectively. If graphics cards become more expensive, it could affect the gaming market and the entire graphics card industry, which has just recently begun to recover.
The Biden administration has taken steps to accelerate the development of the US market, in particular by introducing incentive programs (such as the CHIPS Act) to promote in-house production while creating favorable conditions for companies, especially those with well-established facilities in "hostile" countries. Postponing tariffs for another five months is also a prime example of the above statement and is indeed a friendly move for the average consumer.