Tech giant Apple is already manufacturing iPhones in India with the help of their suppliers. It is reported that 7% of iPhones will be manufactured in the country in fiscal year 2023 (FY2023). However, it looks like Apple is going to make a big change in device manufacturing in the next few years. Because according to a latest research report by Bank of America, Apple may shift more than 18% of its total iPhone production to India by 2025. Basically, iPhone production in the country is expected to increase significantly in the future thanks to the ‘Production-Linked Incentive’ (PLI) scheme announced by the government.
Incidentally, the Cupertino-based tech giant is looking at India as an alternative to China in addition to increasing sales of its products. And that’s why the company is showing interest in building new manufacturing units in this country.
India’s mobile phone manufacturing sector has benefited considerably from the PLI scheme over the past few years. Because under this scheme smartphone manufacturers are encouraged to manufacture their devices locally. According to reports, between 2014 and 2015, around 60 million mobiles were produced. Whereas after the announcement of the scheme i.e. between 2021 and 2022 this number has increased to around 31 crores. In the same fiscal year (FY2021-22), mobile exports of Rs.45,000 crores were also reported from India. In addition, in December last year, Apple’s main supplier Foxconn (Foxconn) received an incentive of Rs 357.71 crore under the PLI scheme.
The Bank of America report also mentions that the PLI scheme will be able to increase the local production of iPhones and other mobile phones by 3 times. As a result, India can earn a profit of up to 1,036.85 crore rupees. Similarly, smartphone or iPhone exports are likely to grow 5 times by 2026, which will help the central government meet its target of a record profit of Rs 453.20 crore.
It is even known that under the PLI scheme, the export volume of electronic goods has increased from 16% to 25% at present. Amish Shah, Managing Director and Head of India Research, Bank of America said, “We believe India can be a reliable and ideal global supply chain option for mobile phones/electronics products.”
But while the production and export of mobile phones has increased significantly, India is facing several problems in importing components. Because since 2017, the amount of mobile parts import has decreased by one third. Localizing display, memory and semiconductor components is believed to be the toughest challenge for India. Because high-end technology is required to produce this type of product.
Back to the main news, Apple aims to manufacture any upcoming series of iPhones in India by 2025. And to achieve this objective, Foxconn, one of Apple’s largest suppliers, has already embarked on expanding its manufacturing unit in India. In this regard, the company is planning to set up a new plant in Bengaluru by April 2024. And for this the senior management officials of Foxconn have also met the Karnataka government officials. In addition, Apple’s new partner ‘Tata Group’ (Tata Group) in India is also said to be in charge of manufacturing the upcoming iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus models locally. Let it be known that the Tata Group has recently acquired the Indian production line of Wistron.
