NEW DELHI: Apple is planning to shift the manufacturing of all iPhones meant for sale in the US to India by next year.
According to a Financial Times report, the move comes after the Trump administration announced reciprocal tariffs on certain countries. The company's goal is to source all of the more than 60 million iPhones sold annually in the US from India by the end of 2026. This means the Cupertino-based company will shift its production from China, a major producer of iPhones globally, to India.
As per the announcement by US President Donald Trump earlier, the reciprocal tariff on India's exports to the US was set at 26%, while China faced a 145% tariff and Vietnam 46%. However, just a week later, the US postponed the imposition of these tariffs on imported electronic items, including those from China.
Apple has been diversifying its iPhone production away from China, which currently assembles more than 80% of iPhones, toward India due to geopolitical issues.
According to data, Apple assembled $22 billion worth of iPhones in India in FY 2024–25, marking a 60% increase over the previous year. This means Apple now manufactures 20%, or one in five iPhones, in India.
The company has previously stated its goal to assemble 25% of its iPhones in India. In India, currently, three major iPhone manufacturers operate: Foxconn, which produces 67% of the country's total iPhone output; Pegatron, accounting for 17%; and Tata Electronics (which acquired the former Wistron facility), handling the remaining share.
The report highlights that, as of March, Foxconn—Apple's largest manufacturer in India—shipped smartphones worth $1.31 billion, the highest ever in a single month. This figure equalled its combined total exports for January and February.
Tata Electronics' iPhone exports jumped 63% over the previous month, reaching $612 million in March.
Meanwhile, the US accounted for about 28% of Apple's 232.1 million global iPhone shipments in 2024. As the company plans to source all of the more than 60 million iPhones sold annually in the US from India by the end of 2026, it would require to double its iPhone output in India.
Although Apple has been assembling smartphones in India through contract manufacturers since 2017, until 2022, the Cupertino-based tech giant primarily used Indian facilities to assemble entry-level or older models.