According to industry sources, the US government began to impose a 10% import tariff on more than 30 LED lighting products produced in China on September 24, 2018, and plans to increase it to 25% from January 1, 2019. The lighting supplier may transfer orders originally belonging to Chinese original equipment manufacturers to Taiwanese manufacturers, especially high-end LED lighting products.
According to sources, US lighting supplier Acuity Brands has increased retail prices in the US market due to the 10% tariff, while US local lighting supplier Easton has increased the price of LED products by 10%. For tariffs to rise to 25%, the retail price of Acuity Brands and Easton products will increase by 15% from January 2019. The current retail price level and OEM shipment price will remain until the end of 2018.
According to sources, other suppliers in the US market are expected to respond to this situation by raising retail prices and may continue to increase orders by the end of 2018.
And due to oversupply, the price of LED lighting equipment has dropped by 20-30% since the beginning of 2018. At the same time, in order to mitigate the impact of retail price growth, US LED lighting suppliers may require upstream OEM partners to share import taxes, which is equivalent to forcing them to lower their prices.