Apple supplier Foxconn invests another $500 mn in India

NEW DELHI: Amid supply chain disruptions at its key China iPhone plant, Apple supplier Foxconn is investing another $500 million in India, the media reported on Thursday.

TechCrunch first reported, quoting a company stock exchange filing in Taiwan, that Foxconn's Singapore subsidiary is $500 million in Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development Pvt Ltd.

The move comes as Apple is fast forwarding its manufacturing plans for both iPhones and iPads in India and Vietnam in the wake of China unrest over zero-Covid policy which has severely disrupted its supply chain, leading to an acute shortage of new iPhone 14 Pro models.

The China upheaval, which hit its key supplier Foxconn's Zhengzhou factory last month resulting in violent protests, means "Apple no longer feels comfortable having so much of its business tied up in one place", according to earlier reports.

Apple aims to ship 40-45 per cent of iPhones from India compared with a single-digit percentage currently, according to famed analyst Ming-chi Kuo.

Every fourth iPhone will be made in India by 2025, according to J.P. Morgan.

Apple earlier this year kicked off the production of new iPhone 14 in India, a first for the tech giant as it narrows down the manufacturing period of new iPhones in the country to cut dependence on China.

Buoyed by the ease-of-doing business and friendly local manufacturing policies, Apple's 'Make in India' iPhones will potentially account for close to 85 per cent of its total iPhone production for the country this year, according to industry experts.

With the iPhone 14 series, Apple's iPhone production in India is slated to jump from 7 million iPhones in 2021 to touch a new milestone of around 12-13 million iPhones in 2022.

In September, the Gujarat government partnered with Vedanta and Foxconn, aiming an investment of Rs 1.54 lakh crore to achieve self-reliance in the field of semiconductor manufacturing.