According to data released by Zhengzhou’s local customs authority, Henan’s smartphone exports totalled 6.65 million units in the first quarter, down 60.1 per cent from the same period last year. The customs data did not provide a breakdown of the handset exports by brand.
An iPhone assembly line worker checks one of the devices made at Apple supplier Foxconn Technology Group’s manufacturing complex in Zhengzhou, capital of central Henan province, on November 22, 2022. Photo: Shutterstock
Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, stepped up its diversification efforts last year after it struggled to keep up with production targets in late 2022 after it was hit by an exodus of workers, who fled over fears of coronavirus transmission, followed by violent protests over employee allowances.
Lou Yangsheng, the Chinese Communist Party’s Secretary in Henan, assured Liu that the government would provide comprehensive services to its local operations, showing mainland China’s effort to preserve its major role in Apple’s manufacturing supply chain.
Foxconn Technology Group chairman and chief executive Liu Young-way. Photo: EPA-EFE
The world’s biggest electronics contract manufacturer will spend that amount on top of the US$1.6 billion it earlier set aside for the 300-acre (121-hectare) site close to Bengaluru’s airport, according to a Bloomberg report that cited people familiar with the matter.
India’s iPhone exports have been growing significantly and are set to nearly double to US$12.1 billion in Apple’s current financial year, up from US$6.27 billion a year earlier, according to data from consultancy Trade Vision.
Landing iPhone supply orders has put Tata Group front and centre in the ongoing shift of Apple’s manufacturing supply chain away from China. Photo: Shutterstock
Tata has also been exploring a takeover of Taiwanese electronics contract manufacturer Pegatron’s iPhone assembly operations in India as soon as May, according to a Bloomberg report, citing sources.
Still, Apple sees mainland China as its prime manufacturing base. Apple added eight Chinese suppliers and removed four contractors in the country in its past financial year ended September, the first time since 2021 that the US tech giant introduced more mainland production partners than it cut.
“There’s no supply chain in the world that’s more critical to us than China,” Cook told state media China Daily in March.
