Even with Mexico's growth, China is still the biggest source for electronics imports in the U.S. It accounts for 78% of production of smartphones, 87% of video game consoles and 79% of laptops, according to the trade group the Consumer Technology Association, or CTA. About a quarter of Chinese imports were electronic products.
While high-value and high-margin products like Nvidia's GPUs are less sensitive to tariffs, many of the secondary parts needed to construct multibillion-dollar AI data centers — communications, storage and power management parts, for example — are vulnerable to price changes and import duties, Barnett said. Supplyframe's price index shows a 6% year-over-year increase for electronic components in the fourth quarter of 2024, after Trump started threatening tariffs.