The Commercial War unleashed by Trump He is forcing Apple to look for alternatives for its iPhone, especially for those dedicated to the United States, with India arising as the salvation table against tariffs that threaten to shoot prices.
The current situation. Apple has suffered its worst stock market fall in what we have of the century, collapsing 20% in just three days After the announcement of the new Trump tariffs that impose 54% of Chinese products compared to only 26% to the Indians.
The company, according to The Times of IndiaIt is quickly redirecting iPhone manufactured in India towards the US market, in a defensive maneuver to mitigate the immediate economic impact while looking for long -term solutions.
Why is it important. This crisis could accelerate a geopolitical change in global technological manufacturing, with India gaining ground at the expense of China as the main electronic production center.
The transfer is not limited to avoiding tariffs: diversifies geopolitical risks and takes advantage an Indian market that is booming.
The great myth. The fantasy of an “iPhone made in USA” promoted by the Secretary of Commerce Howard Lutnick It is economically unfeasible. It is quite obvious but details it well 404 average.
- An iPhone that costs $ 30 assembled in China would require $ 300 in the United States.
- A complete restructuring of global supply chains established for decades would be needed.
- Even manufacturing in his country, Apple would continue to depend on imported components subject to tariffs.
In figures. Current tariffs would increase the cost of production of an iPhone 16 Pro 550 to 850 dollars (300 more dollars), while from India the increase would be “only” 150 dollars.
If Trump fulfills his threat to raise tariffs to 104% in total for China, the extra cost could be shot up to $ 600 per unit, according to Newsweek.
The pragmatic option. India is emerging as the viable and already underway alternative, with the capacity to manufacture about 25 million iPhone per year, sufficient to cover approximately 50% of the US demand if it redirects all that production to the United States According to Bank of America.
Apple does not start from zero in India. Since 2017 he has gradually transferred part of his production there, starting with old models and expanding to the most recent, as highlighted The Wall Street Journal.
The political perspective. India and China maintain a historically tense relationship marked by territorial disputes and competition for regional influence, such as the Military confrontation in the Galwan Valley In 2020.
Apple is in the midst of this rivalry, turning a business decision into a movement with diplomatic implications that could intensify competition between both powers.
And now what. Tim Cook, presumably, will try to negotiate tariff exemptions while gradually increases productive capacity in India, but we should not expect drastic and immediate changes. This is an inherently slow process.
China will continue to be a pillar for Apple. Right now he continues to assume 80% of its productive capacity in general and 90% of the iPhone in particular, compared to the 10-15% that India represents.
In the medium term, we could see an even more diversified production, with Vietnam (than already manufactures 90% of the Apple Watch) and other Southeast Asian countries gaining weight in the supply chain.
Outstanding image | Xataka with Mockuuuups Studio
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