Apple to start assembling iPhone 16 pro series models in India this year
Most of the Pro and Pro Max units made in India are anticipated to be exported to Europe, the Middle East, and the United States.
Apple is shifting gears on the production front by assembling the iPhone 16 Pro Max and iPhone 16 Pro Series in India for the first time. It is a strategic change in a larger strategy that the company has dedicated its resources to diversify its manufacturing aspects away from the Chinese market.
According to Bloomberg News, Foxconn Technology Group — Apple’s key contractor — is likely to commence production of the top-tier iPhone Pro and iPhone Pro Max in its Tamil Nadu plant in the coming weeks after the iPhone’s official worldwide release in the fall.
Apple is now training thousands of workers in its plant in southern India for the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max assembly plans, mainly to target a simultaneous production cycle of the products to the global launch. Reporting that Apple plans to assemble $14bn worth of iPhones in India during the fiscal year ending March 2024, Bloomberg added that this accounts for about 14% of the company’s total global production.
Apple entered iPhone production in India in 2021 with the iPhone SE. Slowly it started producing non-Pro models, and in the last year it started selling iPhone 15 and iPhone 15 Plus, both assembled in India. Apple continues the plan to increase the proportion of the iPhone manufacture in India as the company plans to launch the production of the Pro models in India as well and the company’s goal is to manufacture 25% of all the iPhones in India within the next three to four years.
Foxconn will take the lead in producing the Pro models, but according to sources cited by Bloomberg, Apple’s other Indian partners, including Pegatron’s local unit and the Tata Group, may also start manufacturing these high-end devices in the future. Most of the Pro and Pro Max units made in India are anticipated to be exported to Europe, the Middle East, and the United States.
Although Apple is starting to produce Pro iPhones in India, Bloomberg reports that the bulk of its iPhone manufacturing remains in China. The company faces several challenges in India, such as the need to import costly components and deal with local taxes, which could result in the iPhone 16 Pro and Pro Max being priced higher in India than in some international markets.
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