Foxconn said to begin assembling top-end Apple iPhones in India in 2019
- Foxconn, which already makes phones for Xiaomi Corp in India, will invest US$356 million to expand the plant
- Until now, Apple has only assembled the lower-cost SE and 6S models in India through Wistron Corp’s local unit
Apple will begin assembling its top-end iPhones in India through the local unit of Foxconn Technology Group as early as next year, the first time the world's largest electronics contract manufacturer will have made the product in the country, according to a source familiar with the matter.
Taiwan-based Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, will be assembling the most expensive models, such as devices in the flagship iPhone X family, the source said, potentially taking Apple’s business in India to a new level.
The work will take place at Foxconn’s plant in Sriperumbudur town in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, said the source, who is not authorised to speak to the media and so declined to be named.
Foxconn, which already makes phones for Xiaomi Corp in India, will invest 25 billion Indian rupees (US$356 million) to expand the plant, including investment in iPhone production, Tamil Nadu’s Industries Minister M C Sampath told Reuters.
The investment may create as many as 25,000 jobs, he added.
Another source also said Foxconn planned to assemble iPhones in India, in a move that could help both it and Apple to limit the impact of a trade war between the United States and China.