If the Instant Pot Gets a Price Hike Soon, Blame the U.S.–China Trade War

The Instant Pot gets tangled up in a trade war

Everyone’s favorite pressure cooker could be a casualty in the U.S.-China trade war that’s been ongoing since 2018. The Instant Pot would see a price hike of nearly $38 if the latest proposed 25 percent tariff on Chinese imports goes into effect, Bloomberg reports. That would bring the final sticker price of the most expensive version up to $187.44, a pretty hefty chunk of change for home cooks who just want to make yogurt and butter chicken in peace without getting sucked into a dispute between two economic superpowers.

Corelle, Instant Pot’s parent company, argued in a letter to the U.S. Trade Representative that there are “no other viable options” for shifting production to another country, and that the multi-cookers should be exempt from tariffs because they don’t use intellectual property that’s in danger of being stolen by the Chinese government. “The Chinese government is not interested in Corelle’s technology,” said the company. It remains to be seen whether this self-own of a plea will work; in the meantime, start hoarding Instant Pots while you still can.

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