On China’s social media, the new Apple Store launch in Mumbai stirred memories of the time in 2008 when the iPhone maker opened its first mainland China store at Sanlitun in Beijing. At present, there are 45 Apple retail locations across the mainland.
“Cook showing up [at the new store] means he is giving priority [to the Indian market],” wrote Weibo user Tuzhi on the Chinese microblogging platform on Wednesday.
01:17
Apple opens its first retail store in India
Apple opens its first retail store in India
Following meetings with local tycoons, including Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani and Tata Group chairman Natarajan Chandrasekaran, Cook is also expected to meet Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi this week.
Cook’s visit “fuels confidence and trust among [Apple’s] channel partners, distributors and consumers [in India]”, said Chiew Le Xuan, a Singapore-based analyst at research firm Canalys. He indicated that Cook’s presence “reinforces the expansion plans for Apple in India, creating more opportunities for the brand in the long term”.
The new store openings reflect Apple’s growing confidence that India would transform into a sales powerhouse – the country already ranks as the smartphone industry’s second-biggest market, behind China – and a major new hub for the company’s manufacturing supply chain.
Apple recently reshuffled management of its international businesses to sharpen the focus on India, which becomes its own sales region for the company, according to a Bloomberg report in March. Apple’s head of India operations, Ashish Chowdhary, now reports directly to Michael Fenger, the US company’s head of product sales.
At present, India accounts for only a fraction of the business generated by Apple from the Greater China region that includes the mainland, Hong Kong and Taiwan, according to the company’s recent fiscal 2023 first-quarter results.
Greater China contributed one-fifth of Apple’s US$117.2 billion global net sales in the three months ended December 31, 2022. The rest of the Asia-Pacific, which includes India, accounted for 8 per cent of that total.
Although Apple does not rank among India’s top-five smartphone brands, which is led by Xiaomi and Samsung Electronics, the iPhone led the premium handset segment in 2022, according to market research firm Counterpoint. It said the iPhone 13 was the bestselling premium smartphone in India that year.
Apple’s primary electronics contract manufacturer, Foxconn Technology Group, is also ramping up production in India. Taiwan-based Foxconn, formally known as Hon Hai Precision Industry, plans to add two more buildings as part of its expanded iPhone production facility near Chennai, capital of the southernmost Indian state of Tamil Nadu, according to a report on Wednesday by Mumbai-based daily newspaper The Economic Times, which cited government officials.
Canalys’ Chiew has projected that India will be assembling up to 23 per cent of iPhones by the end of 2025, up from just 6 per cent last year.
Foxconn is also said to be considering a new research and development centre in Bengaluru, capital of the southern Indian state of Karnataka.
Amid those developments and Cook’s India trip, a Weibo user who goes by the pseudonym Dushiyanzhi posted a sarcastic comment to sum up Chinese social media’s speculation: “It’s better for Apple to quit China. Let’s all use Huawei instead.”
Cook’s discussion with Chinese Commerce Minister Wang Wentao covered “Apple’s development in China and the stabilisation of the industry supply chain”, according to a statement by the ministry.
02:23
iPhone 14 delays expected after days of violent protests at Foxconn Zhengzhou factory
iPhone 14 delays expected after days of violent protests at Foxconn Zhengzhou factory
In Zhengzhou, capital of central Henan province, where Foxconn runs the world’s largest iPhone factory, there has been “a significant decrease” in workforce even though it is currently not peak season for the facility, according to a report last week by Chinese media Yicai, which cited an unnamed worker. The article was later removed online.
Foxconn recently slashed hourly rates for its workers in Shenzhen, the tech hub in southern Guangdong province. This facility was offering rates of 19 to 20 yuan (US$2.76 to US$2.90) per hour this week for smartphone assembly line and component production roles, down from 22 to 26 yuan in the same period last year, according to job posts from recruitment agencies.
Other observers, however, see no substantial change in Apple’s commitment to China.
“Apple is not shifting its focus from China, but expanding current offerings into a new market,” said Cameron Johnson, adjunct faculty instructor at New York University and a partner at Tidal Wave Solution. “Even though there is iPhone production [in India], the component ecosystem is in China and will be there for the foreseeable future.”
