Nintendo President Worries U.S. Tariffs May Impact Switch 2 Sales

Nintendo recently released its financial results for the 2025 fiscal year (April 2024–March 2025), and during the company’s online press conference on May 8, Nintendo President Shuntaro Furukawa provided further insight into the company’s expectations for the upcoming Switch 2, as well as potential challenges—most notably U.S. tariffs.

As the June 5 launch date draws closer, anticipation for the Switch 2 continues to grow, with overwhelming demand seen globally. This is especially true in Japan, where official pre-order lotteries have been heavily oversubscribed. In response, Nintendo is actively working to ramp up production in order to meet global demand and has set ambitious targets: 15 million hardware units and 45 million software units sold worldwide during the 2026 fiscal year (April 2025–March 2026).

In addition, Nintendo is counting on the Switch 2 launch effect to significantly boost overall sales for FY2026 by 63.1% to 1.9 trillion yen (approximately $13.04 billion USD), with final profits expected to rise by 7.6% to 300 billion yen (approximately $2.05 billion USD).

However, Furukawa expressed concerns regarding the U.S. market and the long-term profitability of the Switch 2. As a next-generation console featuring enhanced capabilities and significant improvements over the original model, the Switch 2 comes with a higher manufacturing cost—and therefore a higher retail price.

Furukawa stated during the press conference, “The unit sales price is high, and there are corresponding hurdles; however, we are aiming for a launch on par with the first Switch,” according to the Yomiuri Shimbun. The original Switch sold 15.05 million units in its first year, and Nintendo expects the Switch 2 to at least match that figure.

These hurdles include uncertainties in the U.S.—Nintendo's largest market for the original Switch. Furukawa specifically highlighted concerns about the impact of potential U.S. tariffs under the Trump administration and how they could affect consumer spending power.

During the online briefing, he noted that the tariff policy could reduce Nintendo’s profits by "tens of billions of yen." He also explained that if tariffs cause prices of everyday goods like food to rise, consumers may have less disposable income to spend on gaming hardware. Adjusting the Switch 2’s price to offset these pressures could, in turn, suppress demand.

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Analysts have described Nintendo’s 15 million unit sales forecast for the Switch 2 as “conservative,” citing the unpredictable nature of tariff-related disruptions. Despite these external challenges, demand remains robust. After a brief delay linked to tariff-related adjustments, Switch 2 pre-orders officially launched on April 24 at a fixed price of $449.99—and unsurprisingly, interest was extremely high.

At the same time, Nintendo has issued a message to U.S. customers who applied for a Switch 2 pre-order via the My Nintendo Store, noting that delivery by the release date cannot be guaranteed due to the sheer volume of requests.

For more information, check out IGN’s [ttpp]Nintendo Switch 2 pre-order guide[/ttpp].