Sharp considers moving laptop computer production from China to Vietnam to avoid U.S. tariffs

Laptop PCs are among items that would be affected by the planned fourth round of U.S. tariffs on Chinese goods.

Last month, Sharp officials said the company is considering transferring the production of multifunction printers in China to Thailand.

At present, Sharp makes all of the group’s laptops in China.

If the tariffs are implemented, Sharp would likely transfer the production of U.S.-bound laptops to Taiwan temporarily, according to the sources.

The move would be followed by a transfer to Vietnam, where the group is building a PC plant slated to begin operations in the second half of fiscal 2019, the sources said.

The group’s monthly laptop production for the U.S. market stands at about 10,000 units, which is some 10 percent of its total laptop output.

Sharp runs its PC business through Dynabook Inc., formerly called Toshiba Client Solutions Co., which Sharp acquired from Toshiba Corp. in October last year.