"Customs duties on electronics: Between dominance and oppression Electronics Tariff#USElectronicsTariffs
In a world dominated by technology and controlled by microelectronic circuits, customs duties on electronics have become a strategic tool through which major powers exercise their authority, and the boundaries of industrial and commercial influence are drawn.
First: The concept simply
Customs duty is a fee imposed by a country on imported products. When we talk about electronics, we are facing a category of goods that are considered the backbone of the digital economy — from smartphones to microchips, from cameras to sensors.
Second: Dominant countries - tariffs as a weapon
1. The United States of America
In the trade war with China, Washington used customs duties against Chinese electronics as a political and economic pressure tool. It imposed hefty fees on devices and components coming from China to curb the expansion of the Asian giant in the tech world.
2. China
China responded by imposing its own tariffs, but it focused more on supporting local industries, which gave it greater flexibility and speed in technological development, allowing it to compete fiercely in global markets.
3. The European Union
It adopts a more conservative approach, but it uses customs duties to regulate quality and safety standards, preventing the entry of low-quality electronics, especially from developing countries.
Third: Developing countries – between the hammer and the anvil
The high import duties hammer leads to increased prices, making it difficult for citizens to purchase modern devices.
The weakness of the industrial hammer in the absence of a national electronics industry makes developing countries hostage to what is imposed on them from abroad.
Here, these countries live in a state of 'perpetual import without productive capacity'. The result? Drain of foreign currencies, increasing the digital divide, and declining ability for industrial and technological development.
Fourth: Is there a solution?
1. Smart adjustment of tariffs not only to collect taxes but to stimulate local alternatives.
2. Building industrial partnerships with countries that have technological expertise, through free industrial zones.
3. Real technical education supporting local production, even in its simplest forms as a start.
Conclusion:
Customs duties on electronics, while they may seem like a financial tool, are in fact a geopolitical weapon par excellence. Major countries use them to protect their interests and expand their influence. As for developing countries, they have no choice but to reconsider their customs policies — either transform them into a smart pressure tool… or remain a burnt card in the game of the big players.