Computer & Office Equipment Distributors NAICS 423420, 423430

Sep 2, 2025 - Federal Appeals Court Rules Against Trump Administration Tariffs

• The US Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit has ruled that President Trump overstepped his authority when he declared national emergencies to justify tariffs on many countries. Computer and office equipment distributors are likely to benefit if the cost of goods imported from countries that were hit with tariffs decrease. US law “bestows significant authority on the president to undertake a number of actions in response to a declared national emergency, but none of these actions explicitly include the power to impose tariffs, duties, or the like, or the power to tax”, the court said in the 7-4 ruling. Many of President Trump’s steep tariffs are “unbounded in scope, amount and duration”, the ruling added, and “assert an expansive authority that is beyond the express limitations” of the law his administration has cited. The court said that the ruling would not take effect until October 14. The Trump administration is expected to appeal the ruling to the US Supreme Court.
• Some electronics products imported to the US have been exempted from President Trump’s reciprocal tariffs, according to US Customs and Border Protection. Profit margins of computer facilities management services may be compressed if tariffs are applied to these products in the future. The exemption, which comes after the Trump administration imposed a minimum tariff rate of 145% on Chinese goods imported to the US, does not include the 20% tariff on Chinese goods for the country’s alleged role in the fentanyl trade. Smartphones, computer monitors, and various electronic parts are among the exempted products. The exemption applies to products entering the US or removed from warehouses as early as April 5.

• Workplace occupancy, an indicator of demand for office equipment, was 52.8% for the seven-day period ending on June 25, down from 54.3% for the seven-day period ending on June 2, according to data gathered from swipes of access control cards in buildings with security systems provided by Kastle Systems. Occupancy has struggled to remain above the 50% mark since the early days of the coronavirus pandemic despite attempts by many organizations to bring employees back. The Dallas, TX, metropolitan area had the highest occupancy for the seven-day period ending on June 25 at 61.3%. The Philadelphia, PA, metropolitan area trailed all others tracked at 42.7%.
• Computer and office equipment distributor industry employment increased slightly and average wages for nonsupervisory employees increased significantly during the first five months of 2025, according to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics. Computer and office equipment industry sales are forecast to grow at a 3.2% compounded annual rate from 2024 to 2028, slower than the growth of the overall economy, according to Inforum and the Interindustry Economic Research Fund, Inc. Professional and commercial equipment distributor inventories remain significantly above pre-pandemic levels.