On April 29, Nikkei Asia reported that Apple hopes to diversify production, but its supply chain is still highly dependent on China. While the company has high hopes for India,But without the help of the Chinese team, it is difficult for Indian production to operate independently.
iPhone 17 Pro
According to reports, Apple has been under pressure to diversify its supply chain to increase resilience, but this process is long and complicated and will continue until the tenure of its next CEO John Ternus.
However, Apple suppliers and company insiders told Nikkei Asia that Turnus will likely not accelerate the production transfer, at least not for the next 12 months, partly to ensure a smooth transition of leadership, but also because Apple has encountered difficulties elsewhere, mainly in India.
Vietnam has become the largest alternative manufacturing center for Apple products (excluding iPhone) outside of China. Apple had hoped that India could quickly develop into a larger-scale production base for iPhones.
iPhone production remains concentrated in China
Ivan Lam, a supply chain analyst at research firm Counterpoint Research, told Nikkei Asia that by 2025, about 22% of iPhones may be assembled in India, but these products will mainly be sold to the U.S. market. This share is expected to rise slightly to around 25% by 2026.
"Nikkei Asia" previously reported that Apple has even begun to synchronize with China to introduce new products in India, which is the most critical stage in the development of any new consumer electronics products. This marks an important step towards India becoming a more independent force in iPhone manufacturing.
However, this effort has recently suffered setbacks. Two people familiar with the matter revealed to Nikkei Asia,During the Chinese New Year holiday in February this year, when the Chinese team was on vacation, India's supply chain and factories were unable to operate independently and were unable to respond to requests as expected.
Therefore, Apple has told some suppliers that it hopes to maintain its current production share in India for the time being, rather than seeking rapid expansion.
A person with direct knowledge of India's supply chain added that there were still difficulties importing production equipment from China and sending Chinese engineers to India.
People familiar with the matter said Apple's urgency to move production has eased to some extent, at least for now. Xu Zunci, director of the Taiwan Southeast Asia Research Center of the China Economic Research Institute, told Nikkei Asia that many U.S. technology giants, including Apple, have slowed down the pace of supply chain transfers this year as uncertainty rises.
Another senior source from an iPhone supplier told Nikkei Asia,Apple's current motivation to accelerate the transfer of production to India has weakened because China remains the world's most efficient manufacturing base.
"Many parts and material suppliers are still cautious about investing in India, and they prefer to supply Apple from factories in Vietnam or Thailand." A manager at another parts supplier said.
As of press time, Apple has not commented on this.