FT: Apple plans to abandon China to make its iPhones in India

Tech giant Apple plans to move assembly of all iPhones sold in the U.S. to factories in India next year, as revealed exclusively to Financial Times by people familiar with the matter.

According to the financial daily, the main cause for this decision is President Donald Trump's trade war, which has forced the technology company to distance itself from China so as not to be affected by the policy of "reciprocal" tariffs.

The initiative is based on Apple's strategy to diversify its supply chain, which is even intended to be put in place faster than investors think. The goal is to source the more than 60 million iPhones sold annually in the U.S. from India by the end of 2026, FT added.

That would mean doubling iPhone production in India, after nearly two decades in which Apple invested millions in China to create a world-leading production line that fueled its rise to become a $3-trillion tech giant.

Apple manufactures most iPhones in China

Currently, Apple manufactures most iPhones in China through third parties such as Foxconn, which has been the target of the U.S. president's most aggressive tariffs, although in recent days there have been reports of a willingness to negotiate between Washington and Beijing.

Following Trump's tariff announcements, which wiped $700 billion off Apple's market value in a week, the company rushed to export available iPhones made in India to the U.S. to avoid the tariffs imposed on China.

Although in recent years, Apple has been progressively increasing its production capacity in India, it is not enough to supply North American demand. The U.S. remains one of the largest markets, where about 28% of the 232.1 million global shipments of iPhones ended up in 2024, according to the International Data Corporation.

The assembly of the phones, the last step in their production, brings together hundreds of components which the tech empire still relies heavily on Chinese suppliers to produce.

Some tariffs "temporarily" exempt smartphones coming from China

Despite a temporary extension exempting smartphones from the "reciprocal" tariffs of more than 140% on imports from China, such devices are still subject to a separate 20% tax that applies to all Chinese imports into the U.S.

India was also hit with 26% tariffs, although these rates are on pause while New Delhi seeks a bilateral trade agreement with the U.S. On a visit this week, U.S Vice President J.D. Vance said the two countries were making "very good progress."

On this news, Apple declined to respond for comment to FT.