Prices For Various PC Components Have Just Gotten More Expensive/Are Expected to Get More Expensive in the US Due to Tariffs

[Random_Person1234]

Summary

After the United States placed tariffs on Chinese goods in 2018, thousands of companies requested temporary waivers excluding them from the tariffs. As 2021 began, those waivers expired, meaning many companies are now forced to increase prices due to the tariffs which range from 7.5 to 25 percent. These include various PC components, such as GPUs, motherboards, SSDs, power supplies, and cases. Many of these products, such as GPUs and power supplies, are also still in short supply. According to Tom's Hardware, these tariffs may also be used as a scapegoat to increase prices due to the increase in international shipping costs and increase in labor costs due to COVID. ASUS has already confirmed that they have had to increase prices on GPUs and motherboards due to these new tariffs. Other GPU AIBs, such as MSI, EVGA, Gigabyte, and Zotac are also likely to announce price hikes, or have already silently begun increasing prices. Nvidia has not responded to Tom's Hardware's email asking what this situation means for MSRP pricing.

 

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So far, Asus has already confirmed it needs to raise GPU and motherboard prices due to logistical complications and import tariffs, and other GPU vendors, including Zotac, MSI, EVGA, and Gigabyte, are likely to follow suit, or are already doing so silently. In fact, pricing on several families of third-party GPUs from those GPU makers has gone up in the last few days.

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Juan Jose Guerrero III, Technical Marketing Manager at Asus, explained the following:

"Update regarding MSRP pricing for ASUS components in 2021.

This update applies to graphics cards and motherboards*

We have an announcement in regards to MSRP price changes that are effective in early 2021 for our award-winning series of graphic cards and motherboards. Our new MSRP reflects increases in cost for components. operating costs, and logistical activities plus a continuation of import tariffs. We worked closely with our supply and logistic partners to minimize price increases. ASUS greatly appreciates your continued business and support as we navigate through this time of unprecedented market change.

*additional models may see an increase as we moved further into Q1."

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Of course, this doesn't come as a huge surprise, and other components are likely to be affected, too, including motherboards, SSDs, power supplies (which are also still in short supply), cases, and more. However, the catch with many of these components is that they aren't as expensive to begin with, weren't exempt in the first place, nor are they in as high demand as GPUs are, so the price increases won't be as prominent on a per-component basis. That said, you'll undoubtedly feel the price difference well when you tally up the total costs of building a fully new system.

The expiring tariff exclusions result from import tariffs instated by the Trump administration in 2018, but following pushback from a handful of players, specific goods fell under exemptions. The taxation rate ranges anywhere between 7.5 percent and 25 percent, so depending on which pricing bracket GPUs fall in, the price increases for consumers can be significant.

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Naturally, supply issues in GPU land don't help, and while tariffs certainly play a part, there's more going on than just import taxes. With COVID, international shipping costs have risen significantly due to reduced international passenger transport, and labor costs have also increased due to other logistical expenses, like employee shortages due to lockdowns and sick leave. 

Many will opine that the tariffs situation could also be used as a scapegoat to increase MSRPs in the midst of the PC hardware shortage, especially when you consider that GPU prices are on the rise globally and not only in the US. 

My thoughts

I wonder if this will help to relieve stock on new GPUs due to less people willing to pay the increased prices.

 

Sources

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/gpu-tariff-asus-priceincrease

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/31/business/economy/china-tariffs-exclusions-expire.html

[Andreaskhoi]

2 minutes ago, Random_Person1234 said:

Summary

After the United States placed tariffs on Chinese goods in 2018, thousands of companies requested temporary waivers excluding them from the tariffs. As 2021 began, those waivers expired, meaning many companies are now forced to increase prices due to the tariffs which range from 7.5 to 25 percent. These include various PC components, such as GPUs, motherboards, SSDs, power supplies, and cases. Many of these products, such as GPUs and power supplies, are also still in short supply. According to Tom's Hardware, these tariffs may also be used as a scapegoat to increase prices due to the increase in international shipping costs and increase in labor costs due to COVID. ASUS has already confirmed that they have had to increase prices on GPUs and motherboards due to these new tariffs. Other GPU AIBs, such as MSI, EVGA, Gigabyte, and Zotac are also likely to announce price hikes, or have already silently begun increasing prices. Nvidia has not responded to Tom's Hardware's email asking what this situation means for MSRP pricing.

 

Quotes

My thoughts

I wonder if this will help to relieve stock on new GPUs due to less people willing to pay the increased prices.

 

Sources

https://www.tomshardware.com/news/gpu-tariff-asus-priceincrease

https://www.nytimes.com/2020/12/31/business/economy/china-tariffs-exclusions-expire.html

thats wierd prices in norway is going down.

you can get a 2070 super for 200$ here

[TVwazhere]

2 minutes ago, Random_Person1234 said:

My thoughts

I wonder if this will help to relieve stock on new GPUs due to less people willing to pay the increased prices.

Given that people are already paying over MSRP for many of the GPU's because they eiher want to build a gaming PC or a mining farm, unlikely. 

[Radium_Angel]

9 minutes ago, Andreaskhoi said:

thats wierd prices in norway is going down.

you can get a 2070 super for 200$ here

Brand new?

Get me one, I'll pay the shipping to USALand!

[Andreaskhoi]

1 minute ago, Radium_Angel said:

Brand new?

Get me one, I'll pay the shipping to USALand!

used

[Radium_Angel]

2 minutes ago, Andreaskhoi said:

i found an RTX 2070 Super OC XLR8 for 250$

I envy your prices...things in USALand are lunacy right now

[Andreaskhoi]

Just now, Radium_Angel said:

I envy your prices...things in USALand are lunacy right now

oof

[Andreaskhoi]

we dont have craglist but we have a websit e called finn

[SteveGrabowski0]

7 minutes ago, Radium_Angel said:

I envy your prices...things in USALand are lunacy right now

As an American, everything about Norway is enviable.

[Andreaskhoi]

11 minutes ago, Radium_Angel said:

I envy your prices...things in USALand are lunacy right now

here is sum for you

[Andreaskhoi]

1 minute ago, James Evens said:

You are talking craigslist and not new from reseller.

yea, did you think you can buy a 2070 super for 250$

[iBruceypoo]

So the new Maximus XIII Apex will cost $449 instead of $419 - still buying day one. 

 

UPGRADES for Q1 2021:

Maximus 13 Apex

Intel 11900K - high binned from Siliconlottery.com

Gskill Trident Z 5000Mhz or 5200Mhz 2x8GB kit (if they make it, lol) 

 

[pas008]

Wasnt there already 10% tariff going on? 

 

If they reduced it then why was prices never reduce?

[Roswell]

I remember a decade ago when one of the big arguments for PC gaming was that you got more performance for the money in comparison to consoles. You could build a PC for around the price of a PS3 that would outclass it.

 

...now it’s the opposite. Consoles give you sooo much more performance at their price point compared to a gaming PC since components have inflated to such absurd levels. 
 

It’s kind of funny thinking back to when the highest end Nvidia cards released at $400-500 and the top tier Intel consumer chips were $350. You could build the absolute highest spec desktop for around $1,000. These days though? Lol, good luck with that!

 

[kucharczykt]

6 hours ago, Andreaskhoi said:

thats wierd prices in norway is going down.

you can get a 2070 super for 200$ here

Dude Id honestly pay you double that for a 2070 super there like 600 in the US.

[SansVarnic]

-= Temp Locked for Moderation =-

Please have patience as I work my magic.

 

-= Topic Open for discussion =-

 

Ok, several comments were removed, not so much because they were specifically political but the culmination of and resulting derailment was in a way walking that line and dragging down the topic.

 

Edited January 6, 2021 by SansVarnic

[poochyena]

It will be annoying short term, but it will be better off long term as companies will hopefully be enticed into moving production to more ethical countries that aren't currently rounding up it's citizens and putting them into secret concentration camps.

[PocketNerd]

Don't you mean prices for various pc components that you can't buy because they're out of stock?

[Donut417]

As far as the tariffs go it depends on the new administration. Are they going to want to continue this pissing contest with China? OR are things just going to go back to the way they were. Its hard to say. The other thing is companies could also move production out of China. Which is kinda happening. My employer moved some of its production out of China when the tariffs went in to place. Then they raised the price of what they couldn't move at the time. I do know that more countries in Asia are looking like prime targets due to low costs. Such as Vietnam for instance. Apple from what I have read moved some of its production to India (Not going well the last I heard). 

 

Just a thought, what's to stop companies from getting components from China but building the actual products somewhere more friendly like Mexico. I do know when I worked at Sams Club a lot of Samsung TV's were assembled in Mexico. My guess was Samsung wanting to use NAFTA. 

[SeriousDad69]

So they applied for waivers, then didn't do anything to change their supply chain? I guess Chinese slave labor is so cheap and plentiful that even a hefty tariff can barely make a dent, or, more likely, they're just hoping Joe Biden bends to China so it can be business as usual.

[Donut417]

9 minutes ago, SeriousDad69 said:

So they applied for waivers, then didn't do anything to change their supply chain? I guess Chinese slave labor is so cheap and plentiful that even a hefty tariff can barely make a dent, or, more likely, they're just hoping Joe Biden bends to China so it can be business as usual.

Its not easy to just change your supply chain. Not all countries have the infrastructure to support it firstly. The factories might not exist else where. Plus some companies probably thought these were going to be temporary. 

[Jet_ski]

I think Biden administration will reverse many of Trump admin policies. My guess is the trade war hasn’t had a positive impact on the US economy and so they’ll probably end the tariffs soon.

[StDragon]

Can't find any prebuilt PCs with 30 series RTX cards. After looking on the used market, it would appear that scalpers are buying those up and shucking the cards from them. Ouch!!!

[Doobeedoo]

They will still be good prices vs electronics in EU especially in third world countries when you count import and high tax along.

[The_Silent_Guy]

Hi USA.. Welcome to India