5. Tariffs slam PC parts
Everything we’ve talked about so far would already be enough to send graphics card prices skyrocketing, but things got
much worse once the calendar flipped to 2021. In January, significant new tariffs on Chinese products went into effect for many PC parts, exacerbating the crunch.
Asus served as the canary in the coal mine, informing its fans of
impending price increases in early January. “Our new MSRP reflects increases in cost for components, operating costs, and logistical activities plus a continuation of import tariffs,” Asus technical marketing manager Juan Jose Guerrero III said. Prices of Asus graphics cards immediately jumped by $150 to $200 per GPU.
Asus
Other GPU makers rolled out significant price hikes shortly after Asus. Most EVGA graphics cards went up by around $70. Zotac silently raised prices by $100 to
$300 freaking dollars depending on the model. The new government policies continue to wreak havoc on GPU costs to this day.
“Right now, there are tariffs on the pricing of the product,” Herkelman said when asked about the Radeon RX 6700 XT’s seemingly high $479 price. “We have to make sure we are adhering to the legal standards we’re required to. There are mitigations we’ve put in place to make sure we can consistently hit that $479 on AMD.com. It’s all reflected in our business model of getting those products to $479 on AMD.com.”