South Korean media: India's iPhone production growth rate is one-tenth of China's!
On June 22, South Korean media NEWSPIM published an article stating that India lags far behind China in the speed of Apple iPhone production. Observers believe that it will take another 10 years for India to have comprehensive production capacity.
Recently, Patrick McGee, former Apple reporter for the Financial Times, published the book "Apple in China: The World's Greatest Company". He said, "After India relaxed restrictions in 2017, Apple suppliers began assembling some iPhones with Wistron in India. Apple's online store in India did not open until 2020, and its first offline store appeared three years later, which was 15 years later than the opening of the first store in China."
McGee said, "India started with entry-level iPhone SE models and gradually transitioned to producing flagship models. By 2023, there was no longer a time gap between distribution in China and India. By 2024, iPhone Pro models also began production in India," but he emphasized that India's growth rate still cannot compare to China's.
India's iPhone production increased from zero in 2016 to about 15 million units in 2023, accounting for 7% of global shipments. However, China increased from zero units in 2006 to 153 million units in 2013. He stated, "India's iPhone production is only one-tenth of China's from 10 years ago."
McGee assessed that India not only lags behind China in terms of production speed but also in manufacturing methods. He pointed out that India's iPhone manufacturing is a labor-intensive process centered on final assembly, testing, and packaging, with components sourced from China assembled by Wistron and Foxconn.
He said, "Apple hopes to achieve full-scale capacity in India, but this may take five to ten more years." He noted that India's business remains in the early stages of capacity building.
Original article: https://www.toutiao.com/article/1835595434458188/
Disclaimer: This article represents the author's个人观点.