Best Buy CEO Corie Barry said Tuesday that personal electronics could become more expensive if President-elect Donald Trump makes good on his threat with a blow. new tariffs on foreign goodsas major retailers scramble to assess the potential impact of the proposed levies on their operations.
The warning came a day after Trump said he would have a… new tariff round about Mexico, Canada and China on his first day on the job. Before the Nov. 5 election, he had proposed a base 10% tariff on all U.S. imports and a 60% tariff on goods shipped from China. He argued that such tariffs protect domestic producers and encourage U.S. companies to create jobs at home.
Any additional costs for U.S. imports from the three provinces “will be shared by our customers,” Barry told investors in the company’s Nov. 26 earnings call, noting that “there is very little in it.” [the] space for consumer electronics that are not imported.”
“These are goods that people need, and higher prices don’t help,” she added.
Price increases are not guaranteed, Barry warned. Any impact on the retailer’s costs and prices will depend on how new tariffs can be implemented.
“I think it will be a very fluid situation as we continue to work through it,” she said, adding that the company will “make sure we do everything we can to keep prices good for our customers.”
Best Buy could try to partially offset the impact of new tariffs by importing more goods before the tariffs take effect in 2025 and working with suppliers to source products from countries other than China, Barry said on the call. About 60% of the goods Best Buy sells are imported from China.
“We are already planning and working with our vendor partners on the next steps,” she said.
Barry’s comments are echoed by other retailers and manufacturers bracing for the impact of higher tariffs on their supply chains. The Consumer Technology Association (CTA) has warned that Trump’s proposed tariffs could lead to higher prices for smartphones, laptops and tablets, connected devices, video game consoles and computer accessories.
Ed Brzytwa, the CTA’s vice president of international trade, said some trade group members were “moving forward imports from 2025 to 2024 to get ahead of the tariffs.”
As for price increases for consumers, “A number of people are now waking up to the fact that this could be a reality,” he said.
