CNET Survey: Tariff Price Hikes Are Rushing US Adults Into Tech Purchases

Zooey Liao and James Martin/CNET There's been another twist in President Donald Trump's tariff plans. After imposing an additional 125% reciprocal tariffs on China last week, the administration exempted tech devices, including smartphones and laptops, at least for now. There's still a 20% tariff on all items imported from China, which could still go up, meaning tech could get a lot more expensive. Here's an example of how tariffs work, in general. "If there's a 10% tariff on smartphones, that means US-based companies have to pay 10% more to get the products from overseas," said Patti Brennan, a certified financial planner. "That extra 10% has to come from somewhere, and I suspect that most companies are going to pass it along to the consumer -- which is what they've done in the past." These plans are constantly changing, which raises a big question. Should you buy tech items now or wait? Before the last round of tariffs was implemented, a March CNET survey found that 33% of US adu ... Read full article.