a taxing development Acer CEO says its PC prices to increase by 10 percent in response to Trump tariffs Depending on the PC, prices could go up by as little as $20 or as much as $380. Andrew Cunningham Feb 18, 2025 4:14 pm | 56 Acer's Nitro Blaze 11, one of several PCs that will become more expensive as a result of Trump administration tariffs on goods imported from China. Credit: Acer Acer's Nitro Blaze 11, one of several PCs that will become more expensive as a result of Trump administration tariffs on goods imported from China. Credit: Acer Story textSizeSmallStandardLargeWidth *StandardWideLinksStandardOrange* Subscribers only Learn morePC-manufacturer Acer has said that it plans to raise the prices of its PCs in the US by 10 percent, a direct response to the new 10 percent import tariff on Chinese goods that the Trump administration announced earlier this month."We will have to adjust the end user price to reflect the tariff," said Acer CEO Jason Chen in an interview with The Telegraph. "We think 10 percent probably will be the default price increase because of the import tax. Its very straightforward."These price increases won't roll out right away, according to Chenproducts shipped from China before the tariffs went into effect earlier this month won't be subject to the increased import taxesbut we can expect them to show up in PC price tags over the next few weeks.Chen also said that Acer was considering moving more of its manufacturing outside of China as a result of the tariffs, something that Acer had done for some of its desktop PCs after Trump imposed similar tariffs on Chinese imports during his first term. Manufacturing systems in the US is also "one of the options," according to Chen.Acer is known primarily to tech enthusiasts for its budget PCs, but the company sells everything from $200 Chromebooks to $3,800 gaming laptops. Chen's "by default" comment implies that different product categories could be treated slightly differently, but if it's applied consistently across the board, a 10 percent price increase could add as little as $20 or as much as $380 to the cost of a PC. Other companies that manufacture their devices in China are likely to implement similar increases, though Acer is the first of the PC companies to say so on the record.PCs aren't the only goods that could be subject to price increases as a result of increased tariffs. Cars, construction materials, groceries, and all kinds of other goods could also be subject to price increases, depending on how the Trump administration's now-delayed tariffs on goods from Canada and Mexico and its promised "reciprocal" tariffs on countries that charge value-added taxes (VAT) play out.Andrew CunninghamSenior Technology ReporterAndrew CunninghamSenior Technology Reporter Andrew is a Senior Technology Reporter at Ars Technica, with a focus on consumer tech including computer hardware and in-depth reviews of operating systems like Windows and macOS. Andrew lives in Philadelphia and co-hosts a weekly book podcast called Overdue. 56 Comments