The introduction of tariffs in the US for overseas goods has become a problem for the tech industry. Although brands like Nvidia have downplayed the issue, consumers are starting to feel the effects. A price hike for RTX 5090 graphics cards has already been blamed on the new policies. However, fresh reports suggest that GPUs have been spared in the ongoing trade war, but that doesn’t guarantee prices won’t be affected.

An order that outlines President Trump’s tariffs was published on Monday and, as we know now, targets a wide range of countries. In the electronics supply chain, it affects countries including China, Taiwan, Vietnam, and India. The good news is that semiconductors have not been included in the policy, suggesting GPUs have dodged potential price hikes.

Will new tariffs affect graphics card prices?

As spotted by PCMag, the official order includes a list of exceptions to the new tariff rules. These include subsections of electronic integrated circuits, but fail to mention graphics cards directly (tariff codes 8473.30.1180 and 84733011). While this points towards GPUs falling victim to the new tariffs, the order notes that previously targeted imports are exempt. A previous 25% tariff, which has already been troubling vendors, will remain as it is, as does the 20% tariff on Chinese goods.

So, GPU prices might not be getting any worse, but they’re not getting any better. On top of that, there’s every chance that semiconductors and other integrated circuit products fall victim to a fresh wave of tariffs – only time will tell. In the meantime, AMD has stated that it is “closely monitoring” the latest developments, assessing all the details despite GPUs seemingly dodging the new Trump tariffs for the time being.

“We are closely monitoring the developments following [last week's] tariff announcement. Although semiconductors are exempt from the reciprocal tariffs, we are assessing the details and any impacts on our broader customer and partner ecosystem. We will provide updates, as needed, as we learn more.”

AMD, via PCMag

About the Author

Rebecca Hills-Duty

Writing and journalism experience at VRFocus, UploadVR, The Escapist, HTC, PC Gamer, Tech Radar+ and Dexerto. Can sometimes be found playing with retro tech.