Apple could take a big step in the process of reducing its dependence on Chinese factories to manufacture iPhones. The company wants to avoid potential supply constraints in the context of the trade war between the United States and the Asian country. A recent report claims that Apple has started the iPhone 17 early manufacturing stage at an Indian factory.
Apple carrying out iPhone 17 early manufacturing stage in Indian factory
Until now, Apple has carried out the entire manufacturing process of iPhone devices in factories in China. However, The Information suggests that this has changed in the early stage of the development of the iPhone 17. This phase is key to determining the viability of mass production of the device.
During the early manufacturing stage, Apple engineers experiment with the potential design, materials, and other key parameters involved in the production of the device. The goal is to ensure that mass manufacturing (millions of devices per day) is possible around the world with as few defective units as possible. Basically, this stage determines the manufacturing bases that will be used for all iPhone 17 units worldwide.
The report specifies that Apple is doing this for the vanilla iPhone 17. This implies that China or other countries will continue to handle the early manufacturing stage for other models in the series. The source claims that it obtained the information from two reliable sources directly related to the situation.
US political context may have driven the decision
The current political context in the United States could have prompted Apple to accelerate the diversification of the production process of its devices. If Trump wins, he aims to apply protectionist economic policies. This includes continuing or escalating the trade war against China with new, severe tariffs. Potential retaliation from Beijing could be a strong blow to companies that depend on factories in the Asian country.
So, Apple seems to want to start the diversification process as soon as possible. The Cupertino giant could be applying early damage control to get ahead of events. If all goes well, Apple could move more stages of the iPhone manufacturing process to Indian factories. In related news, Indonesia banned sales of iPhone 16 devices due to Apple’s failure to comply with local investment.