Consoles 25% more expensive? Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft Against Trump's Sanctions
Major console manufacturers Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft issued a joint statement opposing Donald Trump's proposal for 25% penalty duties on, among others, consoles manufactured in China. If sanctions are adopted, Switch, Xbox and PlayStation prices in the U.S. will rise by at least 25%.
The sanctions would impose a 25% duty on part of Chinese exports. Nintendo, Sony and Microsoft, the largest console manufacturers in the market, have joined forces and issued a statement to the government, which is probably already on the desk of Joseph L. Barloon, responsible for trade in Trump's cabinet. Last year, 96% of consoles imported to the USA were created in China.
Prices of Switch, Xbox and PlayStation can increase in the US by 25% or more. According to the authors of the letter, such high increases would affect both consumers and 220,000 employees of companies. They would force producers to relocate production to other countries, which would further increase the price of the equipment, which in turn would decrease the revenue from the sale of consoles, games and related services. On the basis of a research, the companies valued the financial losses of consumers at $840 million - the total amount they would have to pay extra. Almost the entire, worth almost $45.5 billion, sector would suffer: from accessories to innovations that are often used outside the technology industry, such as in medicine and education.
Company representatives pointed out that a higher duty on consoles would not in any way affect China and, at the end of the letter, asked for their removal from the list of sanctioned goods. So, in the end, the Americans (and corporations) would lose the most from the sanctions imposed on China.
The trade war between China and President Donald Trump, i.e. the US, is making life miserable for a growing number of people who have nothing to do with the political ping-pong of the two leaders (Donald Trump and Xi Jinping). Which is just like any other war.
A few days ago, we wrote about the US Government's decision to ban Iranian and Syrian players from League of Legends, also as part of sanctions. Everything seems to indicate that this is only the beginning of a political struggle that directly affects the players.
