Trump Warns Of ‘Substantial’ Chip Tariffs On Foreign Firms, Says Apple CEO Tim Cook ‘In Pretty Good Shape’

President Donald Trump on Thursday said the U.S. would “very shortly” impose a tariff on semiconductor companies choosing not to invest in the country.

“Yeah, I have discussed it with the people here. Chips and semiconductors - we will be putting tariffs on companies that aren't coming in. We will be putting a tariff very shortly,” the president said while speaking to reporters ahead of his dinner with tech executives at White House’s newly renovated Rose Garden, Reuters reported.

“We will be putting a very substantial tariff, not that high, but a fairly substantial tariff with the understanding that if they come into the country, if they are coming in, building, planning to come in, there will not be a tariff.”

On Thursday, however, Trump did not provide a specific timeline or rates, although he stated last month that he could charge rates as high as 100%.

Semiconductor stocks have outperformed the broader market this year despite the threat of industry-specific tariffs looming large. The iShares Semiconductor ETF (SOXX), an exchange-traded fund (ETF) that tracks the Philadelphia Semiconductor Index, has gained nearly 14%, compared to the 11.42% gains for the SPDR S&P 500 ETF (SPY) and the 12.81% advance by the Invesco QQQ Trust (QQQ).

Strong artificial intelligence (AI)-demand for high-performance chips has provided an offsetting impact.

On Stocktwits, retail sentiment toward SOXX ETF tempered to ‘neutral’ (51/100) as of late Thursday from ‘bullish’ a day ago, and the message volume also dropped to ‘low’ levels.

Overseas chip suppliers, including Taiwanese foundry TSMC (TSM), and South Korea’s Samsung Electronics and Hynix Semiconductor, all of which are major suppliers to U.S. tech companies, have responded to the evolving scenario and have committed to increased investments in the U.S.

Sitting alongside Apple (AAPL) CEO Tim Cook on Thursday, Trump said, “Like, I would say Tim Cook would be in pretty good shape.” Apple announced an additional $100 billion investment in domestic manufacturing, including in its supply chain, augmenting its total U.S. investments to $600 billion. 

Trump’s tariffs, imposed under the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), are shrouded in uncertainty following the appeals court's ruling that they are illegal. The Trump administration has moved to the Supreme Court to overturn the ruling.

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