In a major win for India, Apple may produce as much as 25% of its new iPhones in the country this year, according to India’s Minister of Commerce and Industry. The 2023 iPhone is set to launch this fall, and rumors suggest that Apple has already begun early production of the iPhone 15 with its supplier Foxconn. Reports indicate that Apple is eager to establish manufacturing lines in India as quickly as possible, in order to manufacture new iPhones in India shortly after production begins at Foxconn’s facilities in China. Foxconn will also operate the India facilities.
While Apple has not yet confirmed these claims, it is no secret that the company has been looking to reduce its reliance on the iPhone supply chain in China for some time. The December quarter of 2022 saw Apple rush to establish new iPhone manufacturing outside of China, as the holiday shopping season saw the highly coveted iPhone 14 Pro and Pro Max largely unavailable as Christmas gifts.
Apple had warned in early November that COVID-19 lockdowns in China would impact iPhone 14 Pro production. This occurred at a time when the two phones were already selling out due to high demand. The following weeks revealed the potential damage to the company that could result from its reliance on China for new iPhone manufacturing. Speculation then arose about Apple’s increasing interest in manufacturing more handsets in India.
China abandoned its “zero-COVID” policy following protests that arose from the recent lockdowns, but the damage had already been done in terms of iPhone 14 Pro production. Apple took a significant hit by not being able to sell millions of iPhones during the busiest shopping season of the year.
Apple began assembling the iPhone 14 in India last year, but operations began after China. Still, this was the first year that Apple manufactured the latest model in the country, having previously mass-produced older models in the country. Goyal’s statement suggests that a significant portion of iPhone 15 models may come out of India this year, although Apple is yet to confirm this.
Rumours that the iPhone 15 will see an early manufacturing trial further reinforce the idea that Apple is seeking to prevent situations where the manufacturing of one of its iPhones might shut down unexpectedly.
