Apple is set to invest $1 billion in India as it gets ready to export its "Made in India" iPhones, according to a new report out today.
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Times of India says Foxconn is the main investment partner in Apple's latest push in the country, with the Taiwanese assembler's factory in Chennai to be used to make Apple products for shipping to global markets. A previous report claimed as much as 70 to 80 percent of devices assembled by Foxconn in India are expected to be exported elsewhere.
Apple had initially trialed limited local production of some iPhone models in India via Wistron's Bangalore factory, but now it's adding its other big Taiwanese manufacturing partner to the mix.
The source said "testing is under way" for the products that have been made in India, and added that "Apple is also seeking clarity" on export incentives that the government currently offers.
In July it was reported that Wistron had recently begun exporting some iPhone 6s and iPhone 7 models from India to Europe, in a move intended to further cement India as one of the company's assembly and manufacturing hubs outside of China.
Back in August, India eased previous rules that forced foreign companies to source 30 percent of production locally, which had long blocked Apple from opening stores and selling devices directly to consumers in India. Before the change, Apple had to rely on third-party retailers to sell its devices.
However, according to industry watchers, Apple is said to be taking the long view and treating India "more as a production hub than a significant market" for device sales.
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Top Rated Comments
(View all)How many people in the US would be willing to actually do the job? The workforce in the US are trained to be in the service industry or become vloggers/SJWs. And their average age is considerably higher than most developing countries.
I find that vloggers/SJW comment so ridiculous it’s almost funnyMeanwhile, there are millions of young workers in countries like India who speak English and can do work of menial tasks in manufacturing for cheap. Blame it on the old industries who think outsourcing everything is a good idea.
There are many of you on here who understand production and manufacturing better than me, but why does Apple not invest as heavily in the U.S.? General curiosity here. If the Chinese and Indians can be trained to build iPhones, why can’t the U.S.?
It’s not a question of training people it’s all a matter of cost. No sensible business would manufacture in the West when it could be done at huge savings elsewhere to the same standard.It's a bit more involved than everyone is saying that it's just about the low wages. My family is originally form Madras (called Chennai in the article) and I grew up in Calcutta and it's fair thing to say that most things in India aren't always as they seem on the surface.
The first paragraph of your statement was reasonable, but the rest went on a political diatribe which can be refuted as it is false. I suggest you keep your politics to yourself and post in another forum. The standard you're bringing here is that all conservatives are fascists. You would be wise to edit your post.Business in India is complex, often corrupt and deeply inefficient. On the surface India has many we might say westernised elements - English speaking, at a high level something like the British legal system and it is democratic too. But the economy in particular is more controlled than it appears, the currency is controlled, this distorts a great deal and the government has to subsidise lots of things. Businesses can measure if you start with $100 to produce something by the time you sell it how much is left after you've had to pay (bribe?) the delivery firm, deal with random taxes, trumped up political costs etc and India routinely scores among the lowest. Moreover it is just a very difficult place to do business without local contacts and every firm who has come ends up having to adopt local attitudes in some senses especially when it comes to finding employees and understanding how they behave. There is a Marks & Spencers in Bombay for example, on the outside it looks like one in London but their attitude and practices are now local. This really will be a big issue for Apple which has long prided itself on maintaining the same high standards everywhere. Sadly, they will have to change if they want to sell from their own stores in India. Even McDonalds accepted they couldn't sell beef or pork in India. Western ideas for example about the role of the police and laws don't work in practice always there - if a local politician decides he wants you to do this or that you might find you simply have to.
This line:
However, according to industry watchers, Apple is said to be taking the long view and treating India "more as a production hub than a significant market" for device sales.
Is 100% pure marketing BS. Apple probably feels they have to say that or have been told to say that to placate the Indian government. If it really was the case many other firms would be doing it. If Apple could they would make the phones in China and ship into India to sell and keep themselves away from all the trouble - all Apple wants is to a)sell in India and b)keep a high cut of the profits. The desire to achieve this is what has driven all this. If they have to export them from there then they will do so, whatever it takes to get into such big market.
So what is it? In a nutshell, protectionism. India has opened up a lot since the 70s and is now planning to allow more foreign direct investment but it's a complex situation and also the government know there is a huge population there they can use to leverage their power, traditionally this has been done by forcing foreign companies to team up with local companies on the assumption this meant some of the benefits stayed in India. There is a big market and Modi can make others dance. So for example Apple was quick to join in the virtue signalling about the bathroom law in North Carolina. They are apparently unbothered about the treatment of Muslims, women, the poor in India. Why? Because there's more than a billion people and very few have iPhones and Tim Cook can't get over the thought of selling more there. The Indian government is certainly playing Apple quite well. First as the article noted it was them simply transporting a whole company to Bangalore to build phones. Now even exporting from there. Essentially Modi, a man if he was in the west Cook would be on twitter raging about as a fascist all day long, can say "jump" and Cook will ask "how high?"
One thing you won't realise unless you go to India is Apple is selling iPhones already at deep discounts but they hide it. They team up with banks to offer some pretty huge cash back deals. However it's going to be a very hard market for Apple to crack. Partly it's just price. But it's also a cultural thing, India is a swirling, fascinating, troubling place that just doesn't mesh at all with the Apple approach. "Simplicity", something at the heart of Apple, just doesn't have much hold over most Indians. For example it was probably down to India that Apple put in dual SIMs. Almost everyone I know in India, literally almost everyone, has an android phone with dual sims and simply will not buy a phone without dual sim. Why? The phone market is crazy - different companies will offer incredibly cheap rates for 3 months of unlimited data etc. So what happens is everyone has a "normal" number they want to keep on one sim and then they use the other one to dip into offers that are being used to hype up their deals. I can imagine Steve Jobs saying "I just don't care I want the simplicity of one number, one sim for one phone" but if you want to trade in India you have to take on local attitudes. Also so many Indians are desperate to leave and do so for the west, as my family did, so India is I expect the biggest market for international calls. Every auntie in India has a dual sim phone with one of the sims so she can call her relatives in Canada or Australia at a reduced rate.
My guess is this is just the start. Sooner or later you might find Tim Cook behaving like Chopra and cheering on India's military on twitter! Read up about the 2002 Gujurat pogrom where over 1000 people were killed and you'll understand why Modi was for example refused a US visa on the grounds of "violations of religious freedom". Well now he is in national power and politicians and businesses alike are finding it easier to forget about morality and deal with him. I took a sort of terrible pleasure seeing the photos of Cook meeting Modi, it was all so forced and fake and such a total climbdown from Cook's usual moral preening and totally undermined all the virtue signalling he does on twitter. Had Apple been around in the 1930s we can say with some certainty they would have been very happy to meet various fascists and sell phones in fascist countries.
Worth noting whenever I see a company like Apple going into India that last year Cook received $136 million. For all his tweeting about "equality" I expect he won't give a single cent to the poor there. I hope I am wrong.
By the way, India will be a production hub due to the demand of mobile devices, not just in India, but in other places too.
It's a bit more involved than everyone is saying that it's just about the low wages. My family is originally form Madras (called Chennai in the article) and I grew up in Calcutta and it's fair thing to say that most things in India aren't always as they seem on the surface.
Are you drunk? Why hate Modi for this? Don’t bring politics in to this. This govt has allowed Apple to build and sell iPhones in India and it’s good. Which bank will give you deep discount and cash back? Your post should be removed as a political rant.Business in India is complex, often corrupt and deeply inefficient. On the surface India has many we might say westernised elements - English speaking, at a high level something like the British legal system and it is democratic too. But the economy in particular is more controlled than it appears, the currency is controlled, this distorts a great deal and the government has to subsidise lots of things. Businesses can measure if you start with $100 to produce something by the time you sell it how much is left after you've had to pay (bribe?) the delivery firm, deal with random taxes, trumped up political costs etc and India routinely scores among the lowest. Moreover it is just a very difficult place to do business without local contacts and every firm who has come ends up having to adopt local attitudes in some senses especially when it comes to finding employees and understanding how they behave. There is a Marks & Spencers in Bombay for example, on the outside it looks like one in London but their attitude and practices are now local. This really will be a big issue for Apple which has long prided itself on maintaining the same high standards everywhere. Sadly, they will have to change if they want to sell from their own stores in India. Even McDonalds accepted they couldn't sell beef or pork in India. Western ideas for example about the role of the police and laws don't work in practice always there - if a local politician decides he wants you to do this or that you might find you simply have to.
This line:
However, according to industry watchers, Apple is said to be taking the long view and treating India "more as a production hub than a significant market" for device sales.
Is 100% pure marketing BS. Apple probably feels they have to say that or have been told to say that to placate the Indian government. If it really was the case many other firms would be doing it. If Apple could they would make the phones in China and ship into India to sell and keep themselves away from all the trouble - all Apple wants is to a)sell in India and b)keep a high cut of the profits. The desire to achieve this is what has driven all this. If they have to export them from there then they will do so, whatever it takes to get into such big market.
So what is it? In a nutshell, protectionism. India has opened up a lot since the 70s and is now planning to allow more foreign direct investment but it's a complex situation and also the government know there is a huge population there they can use to leverage their power, traditionally this has been done by forcing foreign companies to team up with local companies on the assumption this meant some of the benefits stayed in India. There is a big market and Modi can make others dance. So for example Apple was quick to join in the virtue signalling about the bathroom law in North Carolina. They are apparently unbothered about the treatment of Muslims, women, the poor in India. Why? Because there's more than a billion people and very few have iPhones and Tim Cook can't get over the thought of selling more there. The Indian government is certainly playing Apple quite well. First as the article noted it was them simply transporting a whole company to Bangalore to build phones. Now even exporting from there. Essentially Modi, a man if he was in the west Cook would be on twitter raging about as a fascist all day long, can say "jump" and Cook will ask "how high?"
One thing you won't realise unless you go to India is Apple is selling iPhones already at deep discounts but they hide it. They team up with banks to offer some pretty huge cash back deals. However it's going to be a very hard market for Apple to crack. Partly it's just price. But it's also a cultural thing, India is a swirling, fascinating, troubling place that just doesn't mesh at all with the Apple approach. "Simplicity", something at the heart of Apple, just doesn't have much hold over most Indians. For example it was probably down to India that Apple put in dual SIMs. Almost everyone I know in India, literally almost everyone, has an android phone with dual sims and simply will not buy a phone without dual sim. Why? The phone market is crazy - different companies will offer incredibly cheap rates for 3 months of unlimited data etc. So what happens is everyone has a "normal" number they want to keep on one sim and then they use the other one to dip into offers that are being used to hype up their deals. I can imagine Steve Jobs saying "I just don't care I want the simplicity of one number, one sim for one phone" but if you want to trade in India you have to take on local attitudes. Also so many Indians are desperate to leave and do so for the west, as my family did, so India is I expect the biggest market for international calls. Every auntie in India has a dual sim phone with one of the sims so she can call her relatives in Canada or Australia at a reduced rate.
My guess is this is just the start. Sooner or later you might find Tim Cook behaving like Chopra and cheering on India's military on twitter! Read up about the 2002 Gujurat pogrom where over 1000 people were killed and you'll understand why Modi was for example refused a US visa on the grounds of "violations of religious freedom". Well now he is in national power and politicians and businesses alike are finding it easier to forget about morality and deal with him. I took a sort of terrible pleasure seeing the photos of Cook meeting Modi, it was all so forced and fake and such a total climbdown from Cook's usual moral preening and totally undermined all the virtue signalling he does on twitter. Had Apple been around in the 1930s we can say with some certainty they would have been very happy to meet various fascists and sell phones in fascist countries.
Worth noting whenever I see a company like Apple going into India that last year Cook received $136 million. For all his tweeting about "equality" I expect he won't give a single cent to the poor there. I hope I am wrong.
There are many of you on here who understand production and manufacturing better than me, but why does Apple not invest as heavily in the U.S.? General curiosity here. If the Chinese and Indians can be trained to build iPhones, why can’t the U.S.?
It's a bit more involved than everyone is saying that it's just about the low wages. My family is originally form Madras (called Chennai in the article) and I grew up in Calcutta and it's fair thing to say that most things in India aren't always as they seem on the surface.Business in India is complex, often corrupt and deeply inefficient. On the surface India has many we might say westernised elements - English speaking, at a high level something like the British legal system and it is democratic too. But the economy in particular is more controlled than it appears, the currency is controlled, this distorts a great deal and the government has to subsidise lots of things. Businesses can measure if you start with $100 to produce something by the time you sell it how much is left after you've had to pay (bribe?) the delivery firm, deal with random taxes, trumped up political costs etc and India routinely scores among the lowest. Moreover it is just a very difficult place to do business without local contacts and every firm who has come ends up having to adopt local attitudes in some senses especially when it comes to finding employees and understanding how they behave. There is a Marks & Spencers in Bombay for example, on the outside it looks like one in London but their attitude and practices are now local. This really will be a big issue for Apple which has long prided itself on maintaining the same high standards everywhere. Sadly, they will have to change if they want to sell from their own stores in India. Even McDonalds accepted they couldn't sell beef or pork in India. Western ideas for example about the role of the police and laws don't work in practice always there - if a local politician decides he wants you to do this or that you might find you simply have to.
This line:
However, according to industry watchers, Apple is said to be taking the long view and treating India "more as a production hub than a significant market" for device sales.
Is 100% pure marketing BS. Apple probably feels they have to say that or have been told to say that to placate the Indian government. If it really was the case many other firms would be doing it. If Apple could they would make the phones in China and ship into India to sell and keep themselves away from all the trouble - all Apple wants is to a)sell in India and b)keep a high cut of the profits. The desire to achieve this is what has driven all this. If they have to export them from there then they will do so, whatever it takes to get into such big market.
So what is it? In a nutshell, protectionism. India has opened up a lot since the 70s and is now planning to allow more foreign direct investment but it's a complex situation and also the government know there is a huge population there they can use to leverage their power, traditionally this has been done by forcing foreign companies to team up with local companies on the assumption this meant some of the benefits stayed in India. There is a big market and Modi can make others dance. So for example Apple was quick to join in the virtue signalling about the bathroom law in North Carolina. They are apparently unbothered about the treatment of Muslims, women, the poor in India. Why? Because there's more than a billion people and very few have iPhones and Tim Cook can't get over the thought of selling more there. The Indian government is certainly playing Apple quite well. First as the article noted it was them simply transporting a whole company to Bangalore to build phones. Now even exporting from there. Essentially Modi, a man if he was in the west Cook would be on twitter raging about as a fascist all day long, can say "jump" and Cook will ask "how high?"
One thing you won't realise unless you go to India is Apple is selling iPhones already at deep discounts but they hide it. They team up with banks to offer some pretty huge cash back deals. However it's going to be a very hard market for Apple to crack. Partly it's just price. But it's also a cultural thing, India is a swirling, fascinating, troubling place that just doesn't mesh at all with the Apple approach. "Simplicity", something at the heart of Apple, just doesn't have much hold over most Indians. For example it was probably down to India that Apple put in dual SIMs. Almost everyone I know in India, literally almost everyone, has an android phone with dual sims and simply will not buy a phone without dual sim. Why? The phone market is crazy - different companies will offer incredibly cheap rates for 3 months of unlimited data etc. So what happens is everyone has a "normal" number they want to keep on one sim and then they use the other one to dip into offers that are being used to hype up their deals. I can imagine Steve Jobs saying "I just don't care I want the simplicity of one number, one sim for one phone" but if you want to trade in India you have to take on local attitudes. Also so many Indians are desperate to leave and do so for the west, as my family did, so India is I expect the biggest market for international calls. Every auntie in India has a dual sim phone with one of the sims so she can call her relatives in Canada or Australia at a reduced rate.
My guess is this is just the start. Sooner or later you might find Tim Cook behaving like Chopra and cheering on India's military on twitter! Read up about the 2002 Gujurat pogrom where over 1000 people were killed and you'll understand why Modi was for example refused a US visa on the grounds of "violations of religious freedom". Well now he is in national power and politicians and businesses alike are finding it easier to forget about morality and deal with him. I took a sort of terrible pleasure seeing the photos of Cook meeting Modi, it was all so forced and fake and such a total climbdown from Cook's usual moral preening and totally undermined all the virtue signalling he does on twitter. Had Apple been around in the 1930s we can say with some certainty they would have been very happy to meet various fascists and sell phones in fascist countries.
Worth noting whenever I see a company like Apple going into India that last year Cook received $136 million. For all his tweeting about "equality" I expect he won't give a single cent to the poor there. I hope I am wrong.
It is childish to discuss this topic as a one person making this happening (Modiji) or party and mixing up with Gujarath 2002 Train Burning that killed hundreds of children and women and follow up riots!!
Ask Pepsi, Coke, LG, Samsung, Sony, Bose - all went through this and they are milking the market playing by the rule!! And, they are going to be there for ever until market evaporates due to technology disruptions or business disruptions (HTC, Blackberry and now Nokia) certainly not due to politicians, especially in the consumer goods industry! Yes, getting there is not cake walk!!
Remember TC mentioned that India is a market Apple going to be there for thousand years!! He means every word of it!!
Now, coming to iPhones if Apple sells iPhones at Note10+ prices, Apple will have a jackpot for many many years to come!! Indians are ready for that price, but certainly not at 2 X Samsung Note 10+ prices!!