Apple has held talks with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi in order to encourage local manufacturing of its products, in an attempt to make inroads into the world’s second-largest mobile-phone market by users. According to the Wall Street Journal, Apple outlined production plans and requested financial encouragement to the federal government, in line with their ‘Make in India’ initiative that seeks to encourage foreign investment in technology manufacturing.
In June, Prime Minister Modi’s government introduced a three-year exemption on a requirement that foreign retailers must locally source 30 per cent of goods sold within their stores. A larger manufacturing presence in a country of 1.2 billion people would help Apple in its drive to push up iPhone sales whilst also giving it a local connection to Taiwanese-based iPhone and iPad manufacturer Foxconn, who have a manufacturing center in Maharashtra, Southern India.
Apple would join the likes of Facebook, Alibaba and Amazon in large-scale investment in Indian technology operations, and if achieved in time for the unveiling of the eagerly-awaited iPhone 8, the opening of retail stores across the biggest smartphone market in Asia would make 2017 an exciting time for Indian consumers and for Apple enthusiasts. Only 1 in 10 people currently own a smartphone, but that looks set to change this year.
Written by Nigel Pamenter
