Foxconn withdraws about 300 Chinese engineers from its Indian factory, the second such move in months
Apple's assembly partner Foxconn Technology Group has withdrawn about 300 Chinese engineers from one of its factories in India, marking the latest setback for Foxconn's efforts to rapidly expand its production capacity in the country.
The factory of Foxconn's component subsidiary Yuzhan Technology located in Tamil Nadu in southern India withdrew the aforementioned Chinese workers, which is the second such action by the company in several months. According to reports by Bloomberg citing sources, Foxconn has begun air-freighting Taiwanese engineers to fill the vacancies left by departing employees.
Earlier this year, Chinese officials verbally urged regulators and local governments to restrict technology transfer and equipment exports to India and Southeast Asia, a move that may have aimed at preventing companies from shifting manufacturing elsewhere. The reasons for the withdrawal of the Foxconn engineers remain unclear, but the move once again highlights the influence of Chinese technicians and supply chains on the production of high-precision engineering products like the Apple iPhone.
Earlier reports by the Indian media Economic Times stated that Chinese employees of Yuzhan Technology were about to leave. Bloomberg reported last month that Foxconn had asked hundreds of Chinese engineers and technical staff to return to China from its iPhone factory in India.
The Yuzhan Technology factory mentioned above produces metal casings and display modules for older iPhone models, but has not yet started producing the latest iPhone 17 series. According to sources, the factory began production several months ago, but Apple still relies on importing a large number of displays. Representatives from Apple and Foxconn did not respond to requests for comments.
Currently, Apple can increase its imports of displays and rely on other local suppliers for casings. However, the loss of experienced Chinese employees may weaken this American tech giant's efforts to quickly localize its supply chain in India.
Apple intends to collaborate with Indian suppliers, but has not yet introduced any significant Chinese partners in this South Asian country. Its local partners are increasingly relying on the electronics manufacturing division of Tata Group, the only iPhone assembler in India.
Although Chinese suppliers have been producing iPhones for nearly two decades, Indian suppliers sometimes still face some initial issues. The recent easing of relations between China and India may benefit Apple, automakers, and other local manufacturers. China has assured supplies of rare earth minerals and tunnel boring machines to India, but negotiations have not yet yielded results.
Apple is now producing all four iPhone 17 models in India, which will debut next month, marking that all new iPhone models, including the Pro versions, will be shipped from this South Asian country from the outset.
Original: www.toutiao.com/article/1841293267168263/
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