Donald Trump is once again stressing the demand for iPhone manufacturing in America. For Donald Trump, such a large and important product should be made in America rather than in China. But then, here comes the Indian way, accepting large orders for production from tech giants like Apple and thus, slowly proving the Make in India campaign true.
Why Does It Matter That Donald Trump Is Making Such A Demand?
Donald Trump has been vocal about trade and tech wars against China many times. In his opinion, companies such as Apple must build at least part of their manufacturing base in America to create local jobs and lessen dependency on China. However, this remains a daydream, since Apple, in reality, still manufactures most of its iPhones in China, because of cost, scale, and supply-chain advantages.
How Is India Moving Forward?
Apple is now beginning to shift the making of its iPhones to India via its three biggest contract manufacturers-Foxconn, Pegatron, and Wistron-have established factories in Tamil Nadu and Karnataka, employing hundreds of thousands of Indians. By 2025, it aims to produce 25% of its iPhones in India.
Advantages of the 'Make in India' plan
The Indian government is incentivizing foreign companies to manufacture in India through huge incentives flowing through the PLI scheme (Production Linked Incentive) umbrella. This is providing benefits to companies like Apple to quickly enter and establish local supply chains in India.
What Else is India Benefiting From?
Increased exports: iPhones made in India are now flowing to the European and Middle Eastern markets.
New employment: Thousands are entering jobs directly and indirectly.
Technology transfer: Indian engineers and technical teams are being provided an opportunity to work closely with world-class technology.
Even though Trump says so, it will be a real uphill task to manufacture iPhones over there, given the fact that costs are really high while labor is untamed. This is where India will benefit as it moves toward becoming a global manufacturing hub.
