Trump to Apple: Make products in U.S.

President Donald Trump on Saturday took aim at Apple after the tech giant said the White House’s proposed tariffs on China could result in price increases on popular consumer devices such as Air Pods, the company’s wireless headphones, and the Apple Watch.

In a tweet, Trump said there’s an “easy solution” to Apple’s potential woes: “Make your products in the United States instead of China. Start building new plants now. Exciting!”

The company is highly exposed to a trade war between the U.S. and China. It makes many of its products for the U.S. market in China, and it also sells gadgets including the iPhone in China, making them a potential target for Chinese retaliation against the Trump tariffs.

Trump tweeted Saturday that “Apple prices may increase because of the massive Tariffs we may be imposing on China — but there is an easy solution where there would be ZERO tax, and indeed a tax incentive,” if the company made its products in the U.S. instead of China.

Apple declined comment. Last week, Apple said in a regulatory filing that the president’s proposed $200 billion in fresh tariffs on China would cover “a wide range of Apple products,” from its Mac Mini computer to cables, chargers and laptop cases.

The company said tariffs would raise the cost of its U.S. operations and put it at a disadvantage to foreign rivals.

“Our concern with these tariffs is that the U.S. will be hardest hit, and that will result in lower U.S. growth and competitiveness and higher prices for U.S. consumers,” the company said.

In its letter, to the Office of the U.S. Trade Representative, Apple said that “because all tariffs ultimately show up as a tax on US consumers, they will increase the cost of Apple products that our customers have come to rely on in their daily lives.”

Since then, though, Trump has threatened an additional $267 billion of tariffs on China, a move revealed Friday that could cover virtually all Chinese-made goods entering the United States.

The White House has accused China of stealing U.S. intellectual property and forcing American companies to share their technology with Chinese companies. The tariffs would pressure China to stop that behavior, the administration has said. Apple said “it is difficult to see” how tariffs would advance the government’s goal.

The tariffs are top of mind for Apple chief executive Tim Cook, who has personally lobbied Trump for months on issues of taxes and trade, even dining with the president and first lady Melania Trump at Trump National Golf Course in Bedminster, N.J., last month. Cook’s personal diplomacy stands in stark contrast to some of his peers in the tech industry, who haven’t engaged Trump directly — and often are on the receiving end of far more aggressive tweets attacking their business practices.

Apple, like other tech giants, has benefited from the last year’s overhaul to the U.S. tax code, and the company has committed to returning much of the $252 billion in cash it held abroad. In January, the company also announced its “direct contribution” to the U.S. economy through investments and other spending would exceed $350 billion over the next five years, while it would establish a new Apple campus to house technical support for customers. Some components for Apple products, including glass from manufacturers like Corning, are made in the United States, the company has said.

Trump previously has claimed that Apple is building new plants in the United States, but the iPhone maker has not announced any such plans.

The White House has accused China of stealing U.S. intellectual property and forcing American companies to share their technology with Chinese companies.