US Expected to Experience Surge in ASIC Miner Imports Amid Tariff Concerns

Against the backdrop of a «tariff pause,» a short-term increase in the import of Bitcoin mining equipment into the United States is expected due to miners’ concerns over potential tariff hikes. This was stated by Hashlabs CEO Jaran Mellerud.

On April 2, U.S. President Donald Trump announced new tariffs for trading partners, starting at a minimum of 10% for all countries, effective April 5.

From April 9, it was planned to introduce «reciprocal tariffs» for a significant number of partners. Specifically, the increased rates affected Malaysia (24%), Thailand (36%), Indonesia (32%), and Taiwan (32%), while for China, the tariff ultimately reached 145%.

The first three jurisdictions host the main assembly plants of the largest ASIC miner manufacturers. Taiwanese company TSMC supplies the majority of the necessary chips for these devices, and the dominant players in the market, Bitmain (approximately 80% market share) and MicroBT (around 7%), are based in China and partly operate there.

Industry experts described the impact of the planned tariffs as a «massive blow» to the U.S. mining industry. In anticipation of the tariffs taking effect, miners rushed to import previously ordered equipment into the U.S., paying exorbitant costs for air charters from Southeast Asia, with flight prices soaring to $2.5 million.

However, just before the reciprocal tariffs were set to take effect, Trump announced a 90-day delay in their implementation, although the base 10% tariff remained.

Mellerud characterized this tariff as «significant, but not fatal.»

«By paying 10% more for installations than their foreign counterparts, U.S. miners find themselves at a disadvantage. While this is not enough to render cryptocurrency mining unprofitable in the U.S., it does raise capital costs and affects the viability of new long-term investments,» he acknowledged.

Due to these concerns, miners will be hurrying to bring equipment into the U.S. in an effort to avoid potential future price increases, Mellerud noted.

«Sudden, large-scale changes like this create uncertainty, making it difficult for capital-intensive industries, such as Bitcoin mining, to plan and scale their operations,» he emphasized.

Previously, Mellerud calculated the implications of the tariffs Trump announced for American producers of the leading cryptocurrency. He estimates that they will lead to a 24% increase in equipment costs. The payback period for the latest generation of Antminer S21 miners from Bitmain will extend to 23 months compared to 18 months for companies outside the United States.

«The share of the U.S. in the global Bitcoin mining industry is likely to diminish due to the tariffs. The country will remain a significant player, but its dominance will weaken, leading to a more global distribution of hashrate,» Mellerud concluded.

The United States accounts for 35-40% of the computing power in the Bitcoin network.

It’s worth recalling that during his campaign, Trump referred to himself as the «crypto president,» promising to make the U.S. the «global capital» of the digital assets industry and to protect the mining sector globally.