Trump's policy may soon make iPhones cheaper than Samsung Galaxy in US

Samsung may have appeared unscathed from the first rounds of tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump and could even benefit in the short term, but ultimately, its market share in the US may suffer.

On Tuesday, Apple imposed a 10 percent tariff on products imported from China. This could potentially affect Apple, which makes more than 85 percent of iPhones in China. A tariff is an upcharge levied on products made in another country. Apple was able to sidestep these taxes the last time Trump was in power.

Trump has also announced a 25 percent tariff on products from Mexico and Canada but those penalties are on hold.

Companies often pass on at least some of the tax burden to their customers and if the tariff on Apple is not waived, the prices of the iPhone could increase in the US, which could make Samsung's products more competitive.

According to South Korea's Chosunbiz, Trump's future policies could harm Samsung. Trump has in the past proposed implementing tariffs on all countries. Additionally, the president's America First approach could see him exempting Apple from tariffs imposed on China.

So, while in the near future, any possible increase in the iPhone's price could strengthen Samsung's position, in the long term, that advantage might be eroded. Trump has floated the idea of a 10 to 20 percent blanket tariff on all countries. He may already be considering following through on his promise, as evident by his recent threat to impose tariffs on Europe.

Samsung makes about half of its products in Vietnam, and the rest are produced in India, Brazil, and South Korea. Products imported from these places are not subject to tariffs right now.

Korean professor Kyun-Won Kim says it won't be long before tariffs are expanded to countries where Samsung produces its phones. Unless the South Korean government or Samsung intervenes and promises measures such as building factories in the US, the company will be faced with the tough decision of either swallowing the added cost or raising the prices of its Galaxy phones in the US.

Samsung has avoided raising prices in recent years at the expense of its bottom line to remain competitive with Apple which has not raised the base price since the release of the iPhone 14. It's believed that the iPhone 17 will also cost the same as the current generation. However, absorbing additional costs might not be possible, considering the company also took the hit on Snapdragon chip cost instead of hiking the Galaxy S25's price.