Trump Trade Policy A 'Big Headache' For Customers, Says Apple-Supplier Foxconn's CEO: 'Very, Very Hard To Predict How Things Will Develop...'

Young Liu, the CEO of Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) supplier Foxconn, also known as Hon Hai Technology, has publicly criticized President Donald Trump's tariff policy, warning it's creating chaos for tech giants like Apple and Amazon.com, Inc. (NASDAQ:AMZN).

What Happened: During an earnings call on Friday, Foxconn CEO Liu said the U.S. government’s tariff strategy is causing major disruptions across the global tech supply chain.

"The issue of tariffs is something that is giving the CEOs of our customers a big headache now," Liu told investors. "Judging by the attitude and the approach we see the U.S. government taking towards tariffs, it is very, very hard to predict how things will develop over the next year."

Liu said that companies, including Apple and Amazon, are actively exploring U.S.-based manufacturing options with Foxconn. While he declined to disclose details, Liu stated that the company expects "more and more" production to move stateside.

See Also: Nvidia’s New Superchip Delivers 8,470 Times The Computing Performance Of Supercomputer That Jensen Huang Donated To OpenAI

The news was first reported by the Financial Times.

Why It's Important: Foxconn's manufacturing operations are heavily concentrated in China, India, and Vietnam — all of which have been impacted or are at risk of being hit by additional tariffs.

The company is also building a major Nvidia Corporation (NASDAQ:NVDA) server plant in Mexico.

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On Friday, Foxconn announced its financial results for the fourth quarter and full year of 2024. In the October-December quarter, Foxconn’s revenue surged 15% year-over-year to NT$2.13 trillion, while gross profit climbed 15.7% to NT$131 billion. For the full year, net profit totaled NT$152.7 billion, pushing earnings per share to NT$11.01—the highest in 17 years.

The concerns raised by Liu echo broader criticisms of the U.S. tariff policy. Previously, in an interview, Warren Buffett described tariffs as “an act of war” and likened them to a consumer tax.

Similarly, Anthony Scaramucci criticized the tariffs, stating that the market disapproves of Trump’s trade policies.

Image via Shutterstock

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Disclaimer: This content was partially produced with the help of AI tools and was reviewed and published by Benzinga editors.