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Apple Might Manufacture iPhones In Bengaluru From April 2017

The Cupertino company might ditch long-term partner Foxconn for Indian production.
Customers take a look at the new iPhone 7 smartphone inside of an Apple Inc. store in New York, U.S., September 16, 2016. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz
Eduardo Munoz / Reuters
Customers take a look at the new iPhone 7 smartphone inside of an Apple Inc. store in New York, U.S., September 16, 2016. REUTERS/Eduardo Munoz

Apple finally looks set to manufacture iPhones in India from April next year. A report in the Times of India suggests that the company has chosen Bengaluru as the place of choice for the production.

The report said the factory will be set up in Peenya industrial area of the city. Also, in a surprise move, Apple would partner with Taiwanese Wistron to produce smartphones instead of its long-standing manufacturer Foxconn. Latter already has a sizeable presence in the country by producing phones for the companies such as Xiaomi and OnePlus.

Apple has been pushing to produce the phones in India in the recent times. It has also sought the support of various ministries to get relaxation on labelling and taxing norms. The government is already considering the request by assigning a special group for the matter.

CEO Tim Cook had visited India earlier this year and had inaugurated two development centres in Hyderabad and Bengaluru. He also met Prime Minister Narendra Modi to discuss the possibility of opening the stores in the country. Modi invited him to make phones in India.

The company had a great year in India with almost 50% growth in sales, selling over 2.5 million phones. The revenue figures were very impressive as well as Apple took the second spot behind the juggernaut Samsung with ₹9,997.1 Crores. In just three days after the demonetisation almost 1 lakh iPhones were sold.

Consumers would also benefit from this move as there is a 12.5% import tax on the iPhones as of now. Producing iPhones in India would mean that Apple can price them much lower than the current price.

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This article exists as part of the online archive for HuffPost India, which closed in 2020. Some features are no longer enabled. If you have questions or concerns about this article, please contact indiasupport@huffpost.com.