Apple opened trading on Monday, April 14, 2025, at its highest price since President Donald Trump first announced tariffs — despite White House officials warning that exemptions are temporary.
After a rollercoaster week where even rumor continued to cause marked rises and falls in its share price, Apple ended Friday on a comparative high. It was still dramatically lower than the $225.19 they were trading at just before the tariff announcement, but Apple shares were at $198.15.
Then in pre-market trading ahead of Monday's opening, the price rose to $210.28. When trading opened, Apple shares rose to $211.44.
Tariff exemptions set the stage for future specific application
Despite Trump first saying unequivocally that there would be no exemptions, and now insisting that there have been no exemptions, Apple and the rest of big tech got an exemption. It was a massive exemption that came in a surprise announcement late on Friday night.
Practically every device — and components including processors — that Apple sells is now exempt from the most recent 145% tariff. The only exceptions are smaller items such as Apple Watch bands, iPhone cases, and various cables.
So Friday's exemption ruling was not a blanket one, and Trump said on Truth Social on Sunday that "there was no Tariff 'exception'... they are just moving to a different Tariff 'bucket'." For some reason, Trump also promised to launch a national security trade investigation into the "whole electronics supply chain."
It's probable that Trump said this because the worldwide reaction to his Friday exemption was that he had blinked. Alongside Trump's subsequent re-framing of the situation, his commerce secretary, Howard Lutnick, also insisted the White House was not backing down.
"He's saying [technology items are] exempt from the reciprocal tariffs," Lutnick told ABC News, " but they're included in the semiconductor tariffs, which are coming in probably a month or two."
None of this was said at the launch of the tariffs, and none of it was said during the announcement of the exemptions. Ordinarily, markets are skittish when there is little clarity, and especially when policy changes at whim speed.
However, this time the markets appear to be taking the approach that for now, the signs are positive for Apple.
