Foxconn, Apple’s main partner, has iPhone production lines in a few other places in the world outside of China, such as Brazil and India. However, China operations remain the most important when it comes to worldwide iPhone shipments. But this time, it looks like Apple will start producing the iPhone 14 simultaneously in India and China.
The report comes from a trusted analyst Ming Chi Kuo, who revealed that at least one of the new iPhone 14 models will be produced in India at the same time as in China. If true, this will be the first time that production of a new generation of iPhone begins in another country in conjunction with China.
As Kuo pointed out, in normal situations, it usually takes a few months for a new iPhone to be produced outside of China. For example, Foxconn began assembling the iPhone 13 in India in April of this year, while production began in Brazil a few weeks later.
Of course, iPhone production in other countries is not aimed at meeting global demand but at serving domestic markets. According to Kuo, the iPhone 14 production capacity in India will not be enough to fill the gap caused by production challenges in China in the short term, but it is still an “important milestone for Apple” when it comes to expanding iPhone production to other places.
The analyst asserts that Apple’s decision to speed up iPhone 14 production in India is due to geopolitical effects on the company’s supply chain.
Apple is looking for alternatives to China
As reported earlier today, Apple has warned its suppliers of possible “retaliation” by the Chinese government against the United States after the controversial visit of US House Speaker Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan. Pelosi has held meetings with some Apple suppliers such as chip maker TSMC and Taiwanese conglomerate Pegatron. Since then, there have been reports that China is blocking shipments from these companies.
At the same time, the production of the iPhone 14 lineup also faced delays due to a lack of components and some minor quality issues. By increasing iPhone production in India and possibly Brazil as well, Apple may be able to slowly reduce its dependence on China – although this is difficult to achieve.
However, despite all these setbacks, analysts still believe that Apple will announce new iPhones next month. The company is also rumored to be introducing the next generation Apple Watch with a Pro model for the first time and a redesigned iPad with USB-C and 5G port.
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