Trump wants Apple to stop moving iPhone production to India
The US president’s comments throw a wrench into Apple’s plan to import most of the iPhones it sells in the US from India by the end of next year
[DOHA] US President Donald Trump said he’s asked Apple’s Tim Cook to stop building plants in India to make devices for the US, pushing the iPhone maker to add domestic production as it pivots away from China.
“I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday,” Trump said of his conversation with the Apple chief executive officer in Qatar, where he was on a state visit. “He is building all over India. I don’t want you building in India.” As a result of their discussion, Trump said Apple will be “upping their production in the United States.”
Trump’s comments throw a wrench into Apple’s plan to import most of the iPhones it sells in the US from India by the end of next year, accelerating a shift beyond China to mitigate risks related to tariffs and geopolitical tensions. Apple makes most of its iPhones in China and has no smartphone production in the US – though it has promised to hire more workers at home and pledged to spend US$500 billion domestically over the next four years.
“This is a familiar Trump tactic: he wants to push Apple to localise more and build a supply chain in the US, which is not going to happen overnight,” said Tarun Pathak, research director at tech analytics firm Counterpoint. “Making in the US will also be much more expensive than assembling iPhones in India.”
Apple and its suppliers have accelerated a shift away from the world’s No 2 economy, a process that began when harsh Covid lockdowns hurt production at its largest plant. Tariffs introduced by Trump as well as Beijing-Washington tensions prompted Apple to amplify that effort.
The iPhone facilities in India produce more than 40 million units per year, about 20 per cent of Apple’s annual output. While Trump has pushed Apple to make iPhones in the US, the lack of domestic engineering and manufacturing talent will make that nearly impossible in the short run.
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Apple “has one of the most sophisticated supply chains built out over years,” Pathak said. “To disrupt that or to completely move out of India or China will be extremely difficult.”
Trump’s comments suggest he is fine with Apple building its products in India for that market. “You can build in India if you want, to take care of India,” he said.
Trump also discussed tariff negotiations with India, saying the South Asian country has made an offer to drop import taxes on US goods. India has one of the highest tariff barriers in the world and it is very hard to sell American products in the planet’s most populous country, Trump said.
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The bulk of India-made iPhones are assembled at Foxconn Technology Group’s factory in southern India. Tata Group’s electronics manufacturing arm, which bought Wistron’s local business and runs Pegatron’s operations in India, is also a key supplier. Tata and Foxconn are also building new plants and adding production capacity in southern India, Bloomberg News reported previously.
Apple assembled US$22 billion worth of iPhones in India in the 12 months through March, increasing production by nearly 60 per cent over the previous year. BLOOMBERG
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