India has emerged as an appealing prospective option to the second largest economy in the world as Apple looks outside of China to secure vital supply chains that are constrained by Covid lockdowns and threatened by escalating geopolitical conflict.
And Beijing’s major regional foe isn’t wasting any time in touting the chance. The California-based corporation intends to increase its output in the South Asian nation to a fourth of its overall total, according to one of India’s top ministers last month.
According to Piyush Goyal, minister of commerce and industry, Apple already manufactures 5% to 7% of its goods in India. At a January event, he stated, “If I’m not mistaken, they are seeking to go up to 25% of their production.”
His remarks come as leading Apple supplier Foxconn (HNHPF) seeks to increase its operations in India following significant supply interruptions in China.
Apple has relied on a substantial manufacturing network in China for years to make iPhones, iPads, and other well-known items in large quantities. However, Beijing’s stringent zero-Covid plan, which was swiftly abandoned in December of last year, put the nation’s reliance on it to the test last year.
Apple has increased its investment in India since the middle of last year. Can the third-largest economy in Asia deliver, though?
Tarun Pathak, research director at market research company Counterpoint, stated, “Theoretically, it can be done, but it won’t be occurring overnight.
According to Pathak, who said that the business produces roughly 95% of its phones in China, “[Apple’s] dependence on China is a product of the almost two and a half decades that China put in to establish their complete electronics manufacturing ecosystem.”
