By The Sampadak Express
Apple has significantly ramped up its iPhone production in India, assembling smartphones worth $22 billion in the past year, according to Bloomberg. This marks a major shift in the company’s global supply chain strategy, as it looks to reduce its reliance on China and deepen its manufacturing base in India.
Production surged by nearly 60% year-on-year, with India now accounting for close to 20% of Apple’s total global iPhone output. The expansion has been driven in large part by India’s Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, aimed at attracting major electronics manufacturers.
India’s IT and Electronics Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw recently announced that Apple exported iPhones worth ₹1.5 trillion (approx. $17.4 billion) during the fiscal year ending March 2025. The tech giant currently operates three iPhone assembly plants in India — two in Tamil Nadu and one in Karnataka. Foxconn manages one plant, while Tata Group operates the other two.
Apple has also been pushing its Chinese, Japanese, and Taiwanese suppliers to set up shop in India. Key partners like Sunwoda (battery packs), Foxlink (cables), and Aequs (enclosures) have already started manufacturing locally. As a result, local sourcing for India-made iPhones has grown from just 5–8% in 2020 to around 20% today.
Signaling increased confidence in its Indian operations, Apple has expanded production to include premium models such as the iPhone 16 Pro, moving beyond the base iPhone 15 that was previously assembled in the country.
This production shift also aligns with recent U.S. trade developments. Amid rising tariffs on Chinese imports, Apple has ramped up exports from India to the U.S., which now benefits from a temporary exemption on electronics under new reciprocal tariff rules. iPhones made in India currently avoid additional levies, while Chinese-made models face a reduced 20% tariff, down from a proposed 145%.
Apple’s growing footprint in India not only strengthens its global supply resilience but also underscores the country’s rising importance in the electronics manufacturing ecosystem.
