Apple has reportedly started manufacturing its iPhone 11 at Foxconn’s plant located near Chennai. This is the first time Apple is manufacturing its flagship phones in India. The move is seen as a major boost to the Indian government’s Make in India initiative.
“Significant boost to Make in India! Apple has started manufacturing iPhone 11 in India, bringing a top-of-the-line model for the first time in the country,” wrote Commerce & Industry Minister Piyush Goyal on Twitter.
Apple’s decision to start making the iPhone 11 in India can be seen as its efforts to shift production from China to India. As per previous reports, the iPhone maker is planning to shift nearly a fifth (~20 percent) of its production capacity.
According to a new report on The Economic Times, the company will step up the production in phases. Moreover, the Cupertino giant may consider exporting iPhone 11 units that are made in India to other countries.
Manufacturing iPhones in India saves Apple a 22 percent import duty. Although the company has not announced any price cuts just yet, industry executives informed ET that Apple may reduce the prices later.
In addition, Apple is planning to manufacture the iPhone SE (2020) at the Wistron plant near Bengaluru. This plant kickstarted Apple’s domestic manufacturing in India in May 2017 with the old iPhone SE. Meanwhile, the company started assembling iPhone XR in India last October.
While Apple’s contract manufacturers – Foxconn and Wistron have their presence in India, a report earlier this month hinted that Apple’s second-largest contract manufacturer Pegatron has registered its subsidiary in Chennai, Tamil Nadu. We may witness expansion in local production to these plants as well in the future.
