Apple fans in India were rejoicing when they heard the news that Apple will be setting up a manufacturing plant in India. The setup of manufacturing unit in India means, availability of iPhones, iPads and other Apple products at lower price. But going by the facts, there was no such official news about this settlement from Apple. This news originated from the wishful thinking of Maharashtra’s Industry Minister Subhash Desai.
Here are the few reasons why Apple or Foxconn won’t be setting up their manufacturing unit in India anytime soon.
- India is not a big market for Apple products. Also, Apple is not among the top smartphone manufacturers in India so there is no point setting up a manufacturing unit where demand is less. Even if the phone is manufactured by Foxconn, Apple is the one to decide where is wants to set up its manufacturing unit. At present, Apple is focusing on China and hence it will not want to open up another front in India.
- The entire south Asia is a budget phone market and Apple is managing its forte in China. Apple’s demand from the whole of SAARC won’t add up.
- Foxconn is at present jumbled up in matters concerning the Nokia plant in Chennai that was shutdown. Even if Foxconn plans to set up another company in India, the company has to first clear out the old disputes, which will take a while. So this is the another reason adding to not setting up the unit.
- Neglecting all the reasons, even if Apple decides to setup a workhouse in India, it could gain around 11% on duties that could make the smartphones about Rs. 5,000 cheaper. This is not worthy to Apple or the buyers.
- The better option for Foxconn would be to setup a manufacturing unit for already established companies in India. This step will be beneficial for Foxconn as well as the Smartphone maker.
In the given scenario, the best option for Foxconn is to collaborate with existing Indian or Chinese phone companies rather than dragging Apple into Indian market.