Tech Companies Hurry Shipments to US Ahead of Tariff Imposition

In early 2025, leading PC makers such as Lenovo and HP significantly increased shipments to the United States ahead of anticipated tariffs.

In this file photo, he logo of Lenovo is displayed at a computer center in Shanghai on August 19, 2010. Philippe Lopez/AFP/Getty Images

Technology vendors rushed to ship products to the United States in the first quarter of 2025 in a bid to beat out anticipated tariffs.

In the first three months of 2025, 62.7 million desktop and laptop computers were shipped to the U.S. global technology market, analyst firm Canalys said in an April 9 report. That is an increase of 9.4 percent from the same period in 2024.

Shipments were boosted as the world’s leading makers of personal computers anticipated higher costs imposed by a round of tariffs, Ishan Dutt, a principal analyst at Canalys, said in a statement.

“Although similar steps are being taken regarding the broader tariffs set to kick in on April 9, 2025, subsequent quarters this year are likely to see a slowdown as inventory levels normalize and customers face higher prices,” Dutt said.

The world economy took a roller coaster ride over the past eight days as the Trump administration announced, paused, and bumped up tariffs on its largest trading partners. The moves began on April 2, when President Donald Trump formally announced reciprocal tariffs ranging from 10 percent to 50 percent on exports from a large number of countries.

After days of market convulsion and international conversation, on April 9, Trump announced the United States would cut that tariff schedule back to 10 percent for a 90-day period for most nations initially targeted by the reciprocal tariff package. However, Wednesday ended with the White House ordering a steep tariff on goods imported from China.

Trump administration officials confirmed to The Epoch Times on April 10 that the total tariff on goods imported from China is now 145 percent. That will likely be problematic for technology companies that rely heavily on Chinese manufacturing. In addition, China is home to the world’s largest personal computer vendor, Lenovo Group Ltd.

In the first quarter of 2025, Lenovo’s machines accounted for 24 percent of worldwide PC sales, Canalys said.

HP Inc., the second-largest computer vendor in the world behind Lenovo, already promised to ensure that 90 percent of its products sold in North America would not be made in China by the end of fiscal year 2025.

In the company’s latest earnings call, CEO Enrique Lores told analysts and investors that the manufacturing shift was based on “managing the current tariff increases on China.” He said the country will continue to be “an important manufacturing hub for the rest of the world.”

HP’s computers accounted for 21 percent of worldwide PC sales in the first quarter of 2024, Canalys said.

Nevertheless, Canalys said both Lenovo and HP significantly increased their shipments to the United States ahead of April. Shipments increased by 20 percent for Lenovo and 13 percent for HP in that quarter.

“By the end of 2025, most major PC vendors are expected to have completed the shift of U.S.-bound shipments out of China, aiming to enhance supply-chain resilience and mitigate the impact of tariffs,” Canalys said in its report.