Apple iPhones like the iPhone 6s and the iPhone SE have been assembled in India for some years now. On Tuesday, local manufacturer Wistron confirmed to add iPhone 7 to the list of locally manufactured iPhones. Yes, Apple iPhone 7 is now a part of India government’s “Make in India” program. Now a new report coming from Bloomberg reveals some more exciting news about local manufacturing of iPhones. The report suggests that Foxconn now plans to start trial production of the iPhone X range of devices — possibly including iPhone XS, iPhone XS Max, and others — in its Chennai facility before the full-fledged manufacturing begins.
Looks like Apple is taking local manufacturing very seriously and that’s how the Cupertino based tech company possibly wants to get back its lost market share in India. According to the Bloomberg report Apple currently has “about 1 per cent of the country’s shipments as its higher prices deter customers in the world’s fastest-growing major market”. So, locally manufacturing the high-end iPhones might (somewhat) help Apple get back its market share. However, as of now, there are no reports on whether local manufacturing will result in a reduction in prices of the new iPhones in the country.
The good news is — as the report notes — that local production in India would help Apple avoid import duties on iPhones which accounts for around 20 per cent. This will in turn help Apple “meet 30 per cent local sourcing rule that would allow it to open its own stores in the country.”