Washington’s roughly one-month tariff exemption on electronic devices, including smartphones, computers and semiconductors, has done little to ease concerns among Hong Kong’s re-exporters, as ongoing uncertainty hampers their planning.
Industry leaders highlighted the urgency of tapping into emerging markets to navigate the tariffs and urged the government to provide more support to small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) to explore expansion into countries that are part of China’s belt and road plan.
Some local businesses were surprised by the move announced by US President Donald Trump on April 11 to exempt a series of electronic products from the “reciprocal tariffs” on Chinese goods. It marked the first significant relief granted in the ongoing trade war with China.
The list covers 20 product categories, including computers, laptops, disc drives and automatic data processing. Semiconductor devices, equipment, memory chips and flat-panel displays are also included, with electronics giants such as Apple, Nvidia and Microsoft set to benefit.
But Trump’s administration later clarified that the exemption would be temporary until the White House developed a new tariff approach expected to be in force in mid-May. The now-exempted goods would be included in the new category that was designed for semiconductors.
“The one-month gap does not help Hong Kong much,” commerce sector lawmaker Jeffrey Lam Kin-fung said. “Who can guarantee that within a month containers carrying the affected goods will arrive in the US on time without further changes during this period?
