US tariff exemptions for electronic devices are “temporary,” says Commerce secretary.

The Trump administration's exemption from tariffs on electronics may be short-lived.

Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said Sunday that the White House's decision to exempt items such as smartphones, computers and other computer electronics from harsh tariffs earlier this month was temporary.

A new set of roles focused on semiconductors is expected within “one or two months.”

“All these products will come under the semiconductors. Those products will have special focus type duties for reuse,” Lutnick said in an interview with ABC this week.

According to him, the goal is to encourage the production of US chips and flat panels and reduce reliance on Asian manufacturing. The clarification follows a breaking news from US Customs and Border Protection released late Friday, and will provide a temporary exemption for various key electronics from mutual tariffs announced earlier this month by President Donald Trump.

However, Lutnick emphasized that these same items will soon be wiped out under more targeted policies targeting “national security” industries such as semiconductors and pharmaceuticals.

“We need chips, we need flat panels, we need to make these things in the US,” Rutnick said.

Bitcoin prices fell by about 1% in headlines reporting Lutnick's words before returning to $84,000. The broader crypto market measured by the Coindesk 20 (CD20) index has declined by about 1.6% over the past 24 hours.