Last week, Fujifilm revealed that it has suspended some camera shipments because of President Trump’s tariffs. Now, Canon has announced that tariffs mean it will have to raise prices in the United States.
What has Canon said?
Canon has published a summary of questions and answers following the company’s 2025 first quarter Analyst Meeting. The company confirmed that it has “notified major dealers that we will raise prices and are in the process of estimating the timing and amount of the increase. We will conduct a detailed analysis, including the cost of each product and where it is produced, and will determine the rate of price increase for each product.”
When will prices increase?
Canon explained that its U.S. sales subsidiary has around a couple of months’ worth of inventory. As a result, the price increases due to tariffs will be delayed. Canon also said, “As for the second quarter, there is inventory that was imported before the tariff rate increased. On the other hand, there are transactions where the price increases cannot be reflected immediately. Therefore, we estimate that the impact of tariffs will mainly occur from the latter half of the year.”
How much will prices increase?
One piece of good news for consumers is that the 145% tariff imposed on China won’t be a major factor. Canon stated, “Since most of the products we produce in China is for the Chinese market and the amount exported from China to the United States is very small, we expect virtually no impact.” Optimistically, the company also confirmed that “we will have an advantage in the field of cameras, as we produce more products in Japan than other companies.”
What about the rest of the world?
Canon is expecting a decrease in sales volumes in the U.S. due to the tariff-based price increases. However, the company doesn’t expect there will be an impact on the rest of the world. This is because the tariffs only affect goods going into America.
In addition, the company may divert stocks intended for the U.S. to other countries. Canon said, “There are products such as cameras that are on backorder, and even if we cannot ship them to the U.S., we believe that we can ship those products to other regions.”
What we think
It’s becoming increasingly clear that any early optimism around the potential positive effects of President Trump’s tariffs was misguided. Although price increases haven’t materialized yet for some products, Canon’s statements show that they are on the way. Additionally, the U.S. might face increased stock shortages as manufacturers divert inventory to regions without high tariffs. If you are considering a new camera purchase, it might be wise to make it sooner rather than later to avoid paying more.
