Nintendo delayed the Switch 2 pre-orders to assess the “potential impact” of U.S. tariffs, but the company reportedly could keep the same pricing when it eventually resumes pre-orders.
Bloomberg reports that Nintendo may eat the cost of the 10 per cent tariff, even if it loses money on each sale.
“We believe the Switch 2’s bill of materials is around $400, meaning Nintendo would still be selling consoles at a loss in the US with the 10 per cent tariff — but the loss would be something Nintendo would be able to absorb,” Hideki Yasuda of Toyo Securities told Bloomberg.
“Sony is in a tougher situation as most of its PlayStation production is in China, and it may be forced to hike PS5 prices in the US in the near future.”
Nintendo is trying to produce as many Switch 2 units as it can in Vietnam, according to reports. The company makes a third of its consoles there, and during the 90-day tariff freeze, it will try to ship as many as possible of these consoles to the U.S.
The U.S. is a huge market for Nintendo as it makes up a third of the company’s sales. However, another analyst, Robin Zhu of Bernstein, indicates that if the Vietnam-U.S. import tariffs remain at 10 per cent, Nintendo will take the hit and keep its US$450 price tag. However, “at 46 per cent Vietnam tariffs, I expected them to raise [the Switch 2 price] by $50 to $100.”
Unfortunately, Nintendo Canada confirmed to MobileSyrup that it will delay Switch 2 pre-orders in Canada to align with the delayed U.S. pre-orders. It’s unfortunate that Canadian pre-orders have also been affected by the U.S. tariffs.
Nintendo says that the June 5 release date remains unchanged, but it’s unclear whether the Switch 2 price will change in Canada as a result of the tariffs.
Source: Bloomberg, Via: Engadget
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