Apple partner and Taiwanese multinational electronics contract manufacturer Foxconn on Monday acquired 1.2 million square metre or 13 million square foot land in Devanahalli area near the Bengaluru airport. Foxconn subsidiary Hon Hai Technology India Mega Development paid $37 million for the site, news agency AFP reported citing the company’s statement with the London Stock Exchange (LSE).
The recent land purchase in Bengaluru can be seen as part of Foxconn and Apple’s efforts to diversify away from China. Apple is looking to expand its manufacturing footprint in India as the world’s most populous country accounted for 7 per cent of Apple’s iPhone production. Both the companies are seeking to find a production base outside of China as COVID-related curbs and China’s strained relations with the US hurt production.
Not only this, Karnataka Chief Minister Basavaraj Bommai stated in March that the world’s largest company by market value would “soon” manufacture iPhones at a new plant in the state and create around 1,00,000 jobs.
Foxconn chairman Young Liu said in a statement that the objective of his Karnataka visit in the same month was to “deepen partnerships… and seek cooperation in new areas such as semiconductor development and electric vehicles”.
Apple suppliers’ India manufacturing units
This, however, is not Foxconn’s only plant in India as the Taiwanese multinational electronics contract manufacturer has manufactured Apple handsets in India from its Tamil Nadu plant since 2019. Two other Taiwanese electronics manufacturers Wistron and Pegatron also manufacture and assemble Apple devices in India.
Another Apple supplier Jabil Inc has started manufacturing components of Apple AirPods in India, as per a Bloomberg report.
Apple’s India push
The development comes after Apple CEO Tim Cook said that India is a major focal point for the company. Cook said during the tech megalith’s earning call last week: “Looking at the business in India, we did set a quarterly record, grew very strong, double digits year-over-year. So, it was quite a good quarter for us, taking a step back, India is an incredibly exciting market. It’s a major focus for us”.
He added: “There are a lot of people coming into the middle class, and I really feel that India is at a tipping point, and it’s great to be there”. During his India visit, Tim Cook met Prime Minister Narendra Modi and committed to growth and investment in the country. His discussions with Prime Minister Modi were centered around India’s tech and innovation eco-system.
The Apple CEO also met IT Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw and MoS IT Rajeev Chandrasekhar. The key talking point for Tim Cook and Rajeev Chandrasekhar's meeting was local manufacturing and exports of iPhones. The focal point of Tim Cook and Ashwini Vaishnaw's meeting was deepening Apple's engagement in India across the realms of manufacturing, electronics exports, app economy, skilling, sustainability and job creation especially for women.
Last month, Tim Cook opened Apple’s first two retail stores in the Select Citywalk Mall in Delhi’s Saket and Jio World Drive in the Bandra Kurla Complex (BKC) in Mumbai.
(With agency inputs)
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