Apple Mac, iPad shipments surge in India after online storefront opening
Apple has become the fifth-largest PC brand in India about nine months after it first opened its online storefront in the country.
Apple has become the fifth-largest PC brand in India about nine months after it first opened its online storefront in the country.
Officials at the Rajiv Gandhi International Airport arrested three people attempting to smuggle 80 iPhones into India without paying duty.
Apple's shift of operations to India has created around 20,000 jobs so far, with suppliers pledging to increase employment by March 2022 — more than tripling that number.
Apple's app accelerator in Bengaluru, India has become a vital resource for developers looking to stand out in a crowded field, and could serve as the tech giant's foothold into a burgeoning smartphone market.
India's latest COVID-19 outbreak is causing production issues for Apple assembly partner Foxconn, with worker infections causing iPhone 12 production to fall to less than half the usual level.
A pair of facilities in India operated by Apple supply chain partners Wistron and Foxconn were affected by COVID-19 in May, reports state, with a total of 13 employees confirmed to be infected.
Apple's India iPhone assembly partner Wistron hopes to move past the December riot with new reporting structures and leadership changes.
After five years of building up the supply lines and manufacturing support in India, Apple is ready to produce the iPhone 12 lineup in the country, intended for local sale.
Apple is preparing to move up to 10% of production for the iPhone 12 from China to India, reports claim, with assembly partner Foxconn said to be working on units for sale within the country and for the export market.
India is promoting local technology manufacturing with a series of cash-back incentives, although not as much as Apple reportedly sought.
Even as India's efforts to build more the iPhone and iPad in the country grow, political wrangling related to tensions across the border with China are causing problems with the effort.
Pegatron plans on setting up a manufacturing base in Chennai, India, gearing up to produce iPhone models in the second half of 2021 at the earliest.
Industry sources say Apple plans to increase its iPad production in India, and that it is lobbying the local government to increase incentives for it and other technology firms.
Apple has announced that production has restarted at assembly partner Wistron's Narasapura, India facility after December riots shut it down — but the company is still under probation.
Statistics from research firms Counterpoint and CyberMedia point to a year-on-year doubling of Apple's iPhone business in India for the fourth quarter of 2020, though the figure sits at a comparatively paltry 1.5 million units.
Apple supplier Pegatron has leased half a million square feet near Chennai, India as part of its plan to establish iPhone manufacturing operations in the region.
Recent upheaval at a Wistron manufacturing plant in India could delay Apple's production plans in the country, though the situation is unlikely to affect an iPhone 12 ramp, analysts from Piper Sandler claim.
Not only will Apple likely be forced to share results of its investigations on what caused the riots at Wistron, but it may also be held at least partially liable for the damages and labor violations, according to India law.
As Wistron removes a vice president in charge of India amid its wage-related worker riot, Apple has put the assembly partner on probation until it can rectify the situation.
A report from the Karnataka state authorities found that Wistron's Narasapura production plant in India exploited its workers, noting wage underpayment, poor working conditions, and irregular hours.
{{ summary }}