Apple has been manufacturing its products in China for years. Be it the iPhone or the MacBook, Apple’s manufacturing partners in China have been producing every gadget. Recently, however, Apple has been adjusting its supply chain management strategy as it seeks to reduce its dependence on China. This includes shifting production facilities outside China and India has emerged as the top choice, at least for the iPhone.
According to renowned analyst, Ming-Chi Kuo, Apple has decided to shift more iPhone production from China to India, while MacBook production and assembly will shift to Thailand. Apple’s manufacturing partners, Foxconn, Pegatron, and Wistron are already assembling major iPhones like the iPhone 13 and iPhone 12 in India, while production of the latest iPhone 14 is set to begin in December. Kuo said, however, that the total turnaround would take years to complete. He said that the supply in the US market will be from outside China in three-five years.
Bloomberg had earlier said that the Tata group would work with Pegatron or Wistron to produce more iPhone models in India in the future. He has confirmed this in his latest input. “More than 80 percent of the iPhones (by Foxconn) made in India are currently to meet domestic demand,” Kuo said in a tweet. Kuo said a “potential collaboration” between the Tata Group and Pegatron or Wistron “could accelerate growth in the proportion of non-Chinese iPhone production.”
With the latest prediction, Kuo confirms JP Morgan analysts’ estimates, Who said Apple will account for a quarter of iPhone production in India by 2025. This will comprise 5 per cent of iPhone 14 production which will go to India by December.
However, the move to produce more iPhones in India is unlikely to translate into lower prices for the new models in India. There was a huge expectation that Apple would reduce the price range of its iPhones now because their assembly is being done locally.
Koo said that “non-China” production of the Apple MacBook may take place in Thailand. Currently, all MacBooks are assembled at production sites in China, which means that changes can take a long time. This, Kuo said, would allow Apple to mitigate any potential impact from the political standoff between the US and China.
While the entire process of moving assembly lines outside of China would take years, it would allow Apple to provide non-Chinese markets with products manufactured outside of China. Changes in assembly line management strategy may also result in assembly partners undertaking New Product Introduction (NPI) in China and beyond.
Apple may start manufacturing more iPhones in India in the next few years which first appeared on BGR India.
