India wants Apple to make more iPhones there
It may be smart to anticipate speedier expansion of iPhone production in India over the coming 12-months as India’s government may cut import duty on key mobile phone components.
The decision hasn’t yet been made, but the fact it leaked to suggests it will be.
A global supply chain is inevitable
It also hints that India’s lawmakers now understand that some elements of the tech supply chain can’t quite yet be easily moved. Apple and its suppliers have reportedly been seeking this kind of relief, as right now the iPhones that are being made there are forced to pay an extra duty as they import components.
The potential removal of that duty fee should help accelerate manufacturing deployment there.
We (and they) won’t know how these plans will go until February 1, when India will introduce a federal budget that may include some of these components, sources claim. India’s levy is among the highest among comparable nations in the manufacturing space, so reducing them should accelerate iPhone manufacturing. Mobile phone exports from India doubled across the last year, Reuters said.
Toward a destination
India’s trade minister last year said Apple aims to manufacture 25% of iPhones in India and it and its partners will treble investments there over the next few years.
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