Apple CEO Tim Cook informed CNBC that recent price increases on certain iPhone models are not tied to tariffs. The statement coincided with the global launch of Apple’s latest iPhones. Apple has mostly sidestepped the impact of President Trump’s push for reciprocal trade between America and the world while committing to a $600 billion investment in U.S. manufacturing.
“There’s no increase for tariffs in the prices to be totally clear,” Cook told CNBC’s Jim Cramer from Apple’s Fifth Avenue store location in New York City, as the latest iPhone model launched in stores worldwide.
It is one of the first instances in which Cook has decisively addressed tariffs in relation to iPhone prices.
Earlier this month, Apple increased the price of its iPhone 17 Pro model by $100 [by eliminating the increasingly antiquated 128GB storage option], while maintaining the prices of its entry-level phones. It also introduced an Air model that replaced the Plus at a steeper price point.
Cook has also made public appearances with Trump as the company commits at least $600 billion toward bolstering U.S. manufacturing and supporting suppliers.
At the same time, Apple faces questions about its slow artificial intelligence rollout, as well as rising competition in international markets such as China.
“We have AI everywhere in the phone,” Cook told CNBC on Friday. “We just don’t call it” that.
MacDailyNews Take: Again, iPhone 17 Pro starts at 256GB storage, double that of iPhone 16 Pro’s 128GB starting storage option, hence the $100 price difference. The iPhone Air cannot be compared to any prior iPhone Plus model and is a tremendous value for cutting-edge technology in such a thin and lightweight pocketable computer.
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