"Apple is now working on a plan to ship iPhones made in India directly to the US."
Apple a name that is considered synonymous with premium technology across the world. Be it iPhone, iPad or MacBook, Apple has always created a distinct identity in the market with the quality and innovation of its products. But behind this shining global web of technology, there is another story going on — the politics of supply chain. Today, when trade wars, tariffs and geopolitical tensions are increasing around the world, companies want to save their manufacturing base from being dependent on one country. Apple’s big inclination towards India is part of this strategy. Apple is now preparing to send a large part of its iPhones directly from India to the US — so that dependence on China can be reduced and the increasing impact of tariffs can be avoided. Let us understand this whole matter in depth.
US-China trade war and the impact of tariffs
The trade war between the US and China started from the year 2018 onwards. The US imposed heavy tariffs on many goods imported from China. In response, China also increased taxes on American goods. This increased the cost of companies like Apple. Since most iPhones have been manufactured in China so far, an additional tax had to be paid on every iPhone. This was hurting Apple’s profit margins.
Dangers of dependence on China
Production in China is cheap and on a large scale, but the geopolitical risk there is also increasing. There is a fear that if the situation worsens tomorrow, Apple’s supply chain may stop due to the sourness in relations between China and the US. Apart from this, it was also seen during the Covid-19 pandemic that Apple’s factories remained closed for months due to the lockdown in China, which led to a shortage of iPhones. In view of all these risks, Apple decided that now it should adopt the “China Plus One” strategy – that is, production should be done from any country other than China. Need to diversify global production In today’s time, no big tech company can depend on a single country. That is why Apple has started investing in countries like India, Vietnam to make its manufacturing network stronger and more diverse.
India’s emerging role
The Indian government has launched schemes like “Make in India” and “Production Linked Incentive (PLI)” in the last few years. Under these schemes, companies manufacturing electronics get tax exemptions, subsidies and other benefits. Apple also took advantage of these schemes and encouraged its manufacturing partners to make big investments in India.
History of iPhone manufacturing in India
iPhone manufacturing in India started in 2017. Initially, only older models like iPhone SE were assembled. But gradually Apple also started making new models in India. To date, iPhone 11, iPhone 12, iPhone 13, iPhone 14 and even iPhone 15 are being made in India. Expanding Indian manufacturing capacity Apple’s main manufacturing partners — Foxconn, Wistron and Pegatron — have set up large-scale factories in India. Massive iPhone plants have been built in states like Tamil Nadu, Karnataka and Andhra Pradesh. Foxconn is now working on building a super-factory in India that will produce millions of units annually.
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