Thursday, December 26th 2024
NVIDIA and AMD Rush to Ship Next-Generation GPUs Ahead of Trump Administration Tariffs
NVIDIA and AMD have launched an acceleration of their next-generation GPU production and shipping schedules, racing to beat impending Trump administration tariffs that could inflate prices by up to 60%. The companies are prioritizing delivery to US warehouses before January 20, when the new trade measures are supposed to take effect. This aggressive timeline represents a significant departure from traditional GPU rollout strategies, which typically maintain controlled production rates during initial manufacturing phases. The urgent push aims to protect both consumer prices and profit margins, with manufacturers breaking from their usual conservative supply approach to ensure maximum inventory reaches American shores before the tariff deadline. NVIDIA is boosting shipments of its next-gen GeForce RTX 50 series, while AMD is busy with Radeon RX 9000 series.
The impact of these tariffs could reshape the GPU market prices, with flagship products like NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 5090 potentially seeing price increases from the rumored $1,799 to approximately $2,500. Following similar moves by Microsoft, Dell, and HP, this strategic rush to beat tariff implementation shows the technology sector's response to evolving trade policies. These price hikes could trigger a surge in the secondary GPU market as consumers seek more affordable options. While manufacturers work to shield customers from immediate price impacts through pre-tariff stockpiling, the long-term outlook for GPU pricing and availability remains uncertain as the industry adapts to these new trade dynamics. Increasing the prices dramatically will result in a rapid fall in demand, so the supply chain is working overtime to assess and address the potential tariff issue.
Sources:
Ctee, via Wccftech
The impact of these tariffs could reshape the GPU market prices, with flagship products like NVIDIA's GeForce RTX 5090 potentially seeing price increases from the rumored $1,799 to approximately $2,500. Following similar moves by Microsoft, Dell, and HP, this strategic rush to beat tariff implementation shows the technology sector's response to evolving trade policies. These price hikes could trigger a surge in the secondary GPU market as consumers seek more affordable options. While manufacturers work to shield customers from immediate price impacts through pre-tariff stockpiling, the long-term outlook for GPU pricing and availability remains uncertain as the industry adapts to these new trade dynamics. Increasing the prices dramatically will result in a rapid fall in demand, so the supply chain is working overtime to assess and address the potential tariff issue.
86 Comments on NVIDIA and AMD Rush to Ship Next-Generation GPUs Ahead of Trump Administration Tariffs
On the plus side, you won't need a $2500 GPU to play it. :D
On the flipside, much higher prices in the US after the tariffs take effect means lower demand and thus more supply for other countries. It's a loose loose for regular people because the scalpers are just going to hold supply until after tariffs go into effect and that'll guarantee they make a profit.The problem with that is tariffs overwhelming burden the lower and middle class. Bill Gates isn't going to care that he's paying $0.50 more for a toothbrush nor will he even see the impact it will have on the cost of generic medicine which often comes from India, China, and other cheaper labor markets. He and other billionairs will be saving hundreds of millions, perhaps even billions, under a system that primarily uses tariffs and other taxes on goods.
The US is already the world's leader in oil production and there has been a very strong increase ever since the war in Ukraine.
You are pretty much hoping that US companies will continue to vastly increase their output at their own detriment, which simply isn't going to happen. US gas production might continue to increase but I expect them to maintain a decent margin.
In addition, transportation costs average 38% of the cost of goods and cost of fuel is only a percentage of that. At best, even in a fantasy land scenario where you reduce the cost of gas to $1.15, you are looking at maybe a 10% reduction in the cost of goods which obviously is not anywhere near enough to offset most of the purposed tariffs.
It's a reverse robin-hood effect. All the money is being sucked to the richest people, hence why income inequality in the US is now worse than in France prior to the french revolution.
Tariffs would have to accompany massive government investments to jumpstart that process. Even then you'd still be looking at 4+ years before seeing any results. If you are just enacting tariffs but doing nothing else there might not be any domestic development at all. Meanwhile everyone is paying higher prices and that's before you consider retaliatory actions from other countries. If your country isn't going to follow the trade agreements they signed, people are not going to trust doing business with you and they are going to take their money and business elsewhere. Free-trade is a hallmark of the US economy. Tariffs disrupt that.
At the end of the day so long as any country makes the optics look good for the incumbent administration, that's all that matters.
It looks great until it doesn't, and then you're going to want to catch up, but the distance you have to cover has increased a hundredfold. Look at China right now for an example, its only with immense state financing that they can catch up. Where do you think that money will come from?
All Trump does is postpone the inevitable, save his own ass, and make your life harder after he's done. If you still live in the fossil reality, you're living a dying dream. I guess 'fossil' is the best term to describe it, both the gas and its fervent yes-men. There's a place for it, but its for heavy duty, basically anything you can't electrify (yet), in everything else its counterproductive at this point.
Well, if President Elon Musk recognizes that he holds more power than Trump, then the Tariffs won't materialize.
The issue is that Trump promised to duck over China. But Elon Musk who owns substantial Chinese assets (such as Tesla Gugafactory Shanghai and all it's associated LiFePo4 cell and battery production).
We are already seeing the strained relationship between Elon and Trump. If the tariffs don't happen it will be more obvious that the TechBro with deep Chinese connections has taken over the administration.
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There is a reason why the left is calling him President Elon. It's becoming more obvious that he is in charge of the decisions over Trump.
So the real question is if Donald Trump's ego can take a few more months (or years??) of President Elon making self serving decisions, such as cancelling Chinese Tariffs to Tesla / xAIs benefit.
At some point, the Elon ego and Trump ego will collide. I'm honestly not sure who wins out. But if tariffs are truly cancelled after all the hoopla over the past 8 years, we all know it'd be Elon Musks doing.