Most Swedish companies active in the US have been exposed to US import tariffs in the past year.
Some of these were annulled by the Supreme Court in February this year and are now being repaid piece by piece.
Half refunded
So far, the US Customs Service has received over 250,000 refund applications from various companies. About half of what is to be refunded, around $90 billion, has already been paid back, Johan Karlberg, acting US director at Business Sweden in New York, told TT.
Around 1,000 Swedish manufacturing companies have production in the US and have thus been affected by the now invalidated tariffs.
One of the Swedish companies that has now been granted a refund is Electrolux, which manufactures ovens in Springfield, Tennessee, among other things, and which has applied for a refund of around $83 million (approximately SEK 760 million).
Struggling with sectoral tariffs
The application has been approved for payment, confirms Ann-Sofi Jönsson, head of investor relations at Electrolux, to TT. But she notes that the company has had to contend with new tariffs.
In April this year, the US introduced so-called sectoral tariffs, which primarily cover raw materials, products in the metal and automotive sectors, and certain high technology.
The import duties also affect Mexico and thus hit Electrolux, which produces refrigerators and freezers there and needs to import parts for its manufacturing.
The company does not have a strategy for meeting sectoral duties.
We are working to streamline and adapt operations, but the import duties are already noticeable, says Ann-Sofi Jönsson.
Customers demand money
Some Swedish companies, especially in the engineering industry, have handled customs costs by passing them on to customers. In several cases where the companies have been open about this, the customers are now demanding a refund, says Johan Karlberg at Business Sweden.
Some Swedish companies that have been explicit in their customer dialogues and put the customs cost on the invoice say that customers are now demanding this money back, he says.
Something that does not apply to Electrolux, however.
The tariffs have nevertheless had time to make an impact on costs and contributed to broad price increases of between 5 and 20 percent for customers in North America during the second quarter, Ann-Sofi Jönsson reports.
In February of this year, the US Supreme Court invalidated the tariffs that President Donald Trump imposed in February 2025 and extended in April 2025.
In response, Trump, using a 1974 law, imposed tariffs of 10 percent on all countries, tariffs that could only be used for 150 days without approval from Congress.
The deadline for these tariffs expired on July 24 of this year. On July 24, Trump imposed new tariffs of 10-12.5 percent on 60 trading partners, including the EU, citing insufficient bans on goods made through forced labor. (Electrolux, however, is not covered by these.)
According to the agreement reached between the EU and the US last summer, a maximum tariff of 15 percent will apply to most European goods imported into the US. Since then, the tariffs have been changed in various rounds.
Today, a so-called 301 tariff applies, with the tariff level at least 10 percent for most goods. In addition, the US introduced sectoral tariffs, 232 tariffs, in 2025, which primarily cover raw materials, products in the metal and automotive sectors, and certain high technology.
For example, steel and aluminum are subject to tariffs of up to 50 percent, vehicles and vehicle parts to 15 - 25 percent, and certain semiconductors receive a tariff of 25 percent.
Sources: Swedish Chamber of Commerce and TT.
