Apple ‘aims to source all US iPhones from India’, reducing reliance on China

[40micmic]

Looks like even CCP shill tim cook is playing ball.

Apple is reportedly planning to switch assembly of all iPhones for the US market to India as the company seeks to reduce its reliance on a Chinese manufacturing base amid Donald Trump’s trade war.
The $3tn (£2.3tn) technology company aims to make the shift as soon as next year, the Financial Times reported.
Apple has been swept up in Trump’s aggressive tariff policies, with the iPhone maker at one point among the biggest stock market casualties because of the prospect of its Chinese-made products being hit with a hefty import tax when they reach the US.
However, the blow was softened by a White House decision to exclude smartphones from the heaviest Chinese tariffs, although Apple is still exposed to a 20% levy on all Chinese goods as part of the US president’s response to China’s role in producing Fentanyl.
The complex manufacturing process behind iPhones involves more than 1,000 components sourced from all over the world – albeit they are largely put together in China. Apple is secretive about details of its production processes but analysts estimate that about 90% of its iPhones are assembled in the country.
According to the FT, Apple plans to source from India the more than 60m iPhones sold in the US annually by the end of 2026 – a commitment that would require more than doubling iPhone assembly in India.
Apple has already been ramping up production in India and diverting iPhones assembled in the country to the US. The company’s main Indian suppliers, Foxconn and Tata, shipped almost $2bn worth of handsets to their largest market in March as Apple sought to offset the impact of looming tariffs.
It also chartered cargo flights to ferry 600 tonnes of iPhones – or as many as 1.5m devices – to the US to ensure sufficient inventory in an important market. Apple has three plants in India and last month temporarily extended operations to Sunday working at the biggest Foxconn India factory in Chennai.
More than 5o% of Apple’s Mac products and 80% of its iPads are assembled in China as well, according to US investment bank Evercore. Apple watches are largely built in Vietnam.
Analysts do not expect Apple to move iPhone production to the US, despite the White House insisting that the manufacturing of an American tech product will ultimately return home. The US president’s press secretary, Karoline Leavitt, told reporters that Apple’s recent announcement of a $500bn investment indicated a US-made iPhone was possible.
“If Apple didn’t think the US could do it, they probably wouldn’t have put up that big chunk of change,” she said.
However, experts have played down the prospect. Wedbush Securities, a US financial firm, said the cost of an American-made iPhone would more than treble if production was shifted to the US.

Apple ‘aims to source all US iPhones from India’, reducing reliance on China

Report suggests tech firm – swept up in Donald Trump’s trade war – will make change as soon as 2026

www.theguardian.com

 

[Shaquille Oatmeal]

But it isn't coming to America.
I thought that was the point of tariffs.

 

[nottyboi]

Huawei's latest phone factory produces 1 phone a second and is a lights out factory, i.e, no people inside. I wonder what is the point of Apple making phones in India with this paradigm being already attained in China.

 

[mandrill]

I'm guessing this is all part of the shimmy-and-shake leading up to Trump giving the big tech firms total tariff waivers - in return for the usual payment into his crypto fund.

 

[40micmic]

But it isn't coming to America.
I thought that was the point of tariffs.

I think the idea was more about moving supply chains and reliance away from china. That would be my biggest priority in all of this

 

[Insidious Von]

I'm guessing this is all part of the shimmy-and-shake leading up to Trump giving the big tech firms total tariff waivers - in return for the usual payment into his crypto fund.

The only problem is India doesn't give a flying fuck about Apple. They are tech savvy, they wont play patsy to an American conglomerate. Maybe Apple can set up shop in Afghanistan, the Taliban will make their iPhones.

Trump and the GOP better learn that this isn't the 1950's anymore.

 

[40micmic]

Huawei's latest phone factory produces 1 phone a second and is a lights out factory, i.e, no people inside. I wonder what is the point of Apple making phones in India with this paradigm being already attained in China.

This is false claim. Not even Huawei dares to make a claim of 1 phone per second. They can produce 1 phone every 28 seconds which is still very impressive. From what i know, huawei is trying to completely localize its supply chain but SMIC is still a few generations behind the leading edge for chips.

As an aside, the Xiaomi factory in India claims to make one phone every second.

 

[The Oracle]

As an aside, the Xiaomi factory in India claims to make one phone every second.

How is that even possible?

 

[40micmic]

How is that even possible?

No clue lol. I remember reading an article years ago. Ill see if i can find it.

 

[DesRicardo]

They've been trying to move product to India for like a decade now.

They can't match the quality at the same volume that China can.

 

[40micmic]

There are a few articles on thiz but unfortunately behind paywalls.

Xiaomi doubles down on India with second smartphone production plant

China-based mobile manufacturer Xiaomi has opened a second production plant in India as it continues efforts to grow in the country.

www.pocketgamer.biz

.

 

[lomotil]

They've been trying to move product to India for like a decade now.

They can't match the quality at the same volume that China can.

The price of the phone will rise as well.

 

[40micmic]

The price of the phone will rise as well.

Probably. But how much do you weigh that cost increase against a dictator of an adversarial nation who could literally shut down apple and wipe the most valuable company off the map if he wanted too.

Have you ever thought about why companies like Apple, tesla, disney never ever criticize the CCP or their human rights practices. All three of those CEOs are politically engaged i. The U.S. and speak out all the time about the problems in the U.S. but never a peep about China.

It is time everyone moves away from China until they change their practices and obey the laws set by thr WTO even if there is temporary pain.

 

[HungSowel]

India is totally messed up, they have a caste system and ontop of that the British brought their class system to india.

 

[lomotil]

Probably. But how much do you weigh that cost increase against a dictator of an adversarial nation who could literally shut down apple and wipe the most valuable company off the map if he wanted too.

Have you ever thought about why companies like Apple, tesla, disney never ever criticize the CCP or their human rights practices. All three of those CEOs are politically engaged i. The U.S. and speak out all the time about the problems in the U.S. but never a peep about China.

It is time everyone moves away from China until they change their practices and obey the laws set by thr WTO even if there is temporary pain.

China remains the global supply chain for most nations and China holds with Japan the significant of US debt in Treasury Bills.
American under Trump is not in a position to tell their banker China what to do. Therefor, China gets away with their “ human rights” atrocities.
China and America are partners in a death dance.

And by the way, the world can survive without Apple, China can for sure..
American is falling behind China on telecommunications networks, EV and many other technologies and Trump will accelerate this decline further with his current actions as China goes into a long term defensive posture.
Cultural norms make the Chinese more resilient to down turns than Americans.
Chinese is a brutal totalitarian regime than doesn’t have to worry about circus spectacle elections every four years like America and as a result can make 20 and 40 year plans as evidence by the Silk Road initiative .
By the end of the third quarter, Trump will back off or plunge America into recession.

 

[southpaw]

India is totally messed up, they have a caste system and ontop of that the British brought their class system to india.

And how exactly does this affect the production of smartphones?

You're paying them to do a job. Outside of that, it's not our concern.

 

[40micmic]

China remains the global supply chain for most nations and China holds with Japan the significant of US debt in Treasury Bills.
American under Trump is not in a position to tell their banker China what to do. Therefor, China gets away with their “ human rights” atrocities.
China and America are partners in a death dance.

Yes China does hold a significant card with their treasuries. But the U.S. holds a significant card as well with the ability to delist chinese stocks from trading on american exchanges. To be honest, this should be allowed to happen anyways since Chinese stocks don't abide by any of the regulatory and compliance rules that other companies to do trade on American exchanges. But if Chinese stocks were delisted, almost 800B would be wiped away. There is no way the HKSE or Shanghai exchange would be able to take this liquidity and this would likely also send China's market into chaos. Hopefully it does not come to this.

American is falling behind China on telecommunications networks, EV and many other technologies and Trump will accelerate this decline further with his current actions as China goes into a long term defensive posture.

There are some areas that China is surging ahead simply because of their manufacturing prowess and expertise. We can build fast, we can build cheap, but a lot of the time very substandard quality. The EV industry has a few big players with BYD, Xiaomi, Li, X Peng, Nio, etc. While there are a lot of bells and whistles with some of their premium cars, the QC and safety standards are very poor in comparison to a Tesla. I don't know enough about their FSD vs Tesla, but I've seen hundreds of clips of it failing tremendously.

I think the most important technology is the AI race and China lags behind. I don't see them having the ability to catch up with the export controls on the high end chips. They are at least 3 generations behind.

Cultural norms make the Chinese more resilient to down turns than Americans.
Chinese is a brutal totalitarian regime than doesn’t have to worry about circus spectacle elections every four years like America and as a result can make 20 and 40 year plans as evidence by the Silk Road initiative .
By the end of the third quarter, Trump will back off or plunge America into recession.

It is true that we have been taught at a young age to 吃苦 (eat bitterness) which means to endure, to suffer. And this is a great advantage for the CCP. However, you are seeing the younger generations (those who did not suffer through the famines, revolutions) are not as built for this as the older generations. It is evident in the lying flat movement, the 20%+ youth unemployment rate or large segments of the youth becoming professional children. Factories will continue to shut down as the U.S. is 15% of their exports. This number is very understated and it is more likely double that given back in Trade War 2018, China being figuring out ways to circumvent rules, i.e. mislabelling to Made in other country, or setting up factories in other nations. That is 30% of their exports without a home. The Chinese economy is already on a deflationary spiral, consumer spending and confidence is way down, etc. Personally, I think Xi will have a tougher time with the several different CCP factions at home, i.e. the Shanghai clique, as well as the PLA and trying to manage civil unrest if mouths aren't fed than Trump will try to ween segments of the population of hyper consumerism.

 

[HungSowel]

And how exactly does this affect the production of smartphones?

You're paying them to do a job. Outside of that, it's not our concern.

It permeates every aspect of life, India is a divided country. On the surface it looks like you have a workforce of hundreds of millions of people but everyone is off doing their own thing.

Apple had to build the factory, the road to the factory, the sewer line to the factory, the power lines to the factory, the power station that supplies power to the factory, the restaurants to feed the factory workers, the schools to babysit the factory worker's kids, etc... The stuff we call infrastructure is not in place.

 

[40micmic]

Chinese is a brutal totalitarian regime than doesn’t have to worry about circus spectacle elections every four years like America and as a result can make 20 and 40 year plans as evidence by the Silk Road initiative .
By the end of the third quarter, Trump will back off or plunge America into recession.

Sorry forgot to add, but the BRI has been a brutal disaster. There are a variety of reasons for this but i think corruption is probably the top one. More and more countries are declining future BRI projects and there are far too many countries who now regret the decision to accept BRI projects.

 

[southpaw]

Apple had to build the factory,... The stuff we call infrastructure is not in place.

You just described every case of direct foreign investment. A company doesn't invest money without a payoff at the end. It's not a charity.

This is no different than building all those resorts in the Caribbean. And it sure beats taking money from western taxpayers for foreign aid. No one is forcing you to buy an iPhone made in India.