Apple supplier Wistron to stop iPhone manufacturing in India
Apple is making a wide range of changes to its global production lines outside of China, and India is one of its key focus markets. It was recently confirmed that the Tata Group is ready to enter the iPhone arena in India by buying a factory from another iPhone supplier Wistron in India.
But now a report from ET suggests that Wistron was more than happy to end its partnership with the iPhone maker as Apple reportedly did not give the vendor a profit. Wistron sources cited in the report say Wistron saw no long-term benefit in assembling the final product, in this case the iPhone.
“Wistron has not been able to monetize Apple’s business in India. It has tried to negotiate with Apple for higher margins, but being a smaller player compared to Foxconn and Pegatron globally, it did not have the necessary leverage,” the executive said in the report.
According to the report, Wistron has also been looking to divest the business, and with the Tata Group now poised to join the lineup, Wistron feels the India business has become too small for its focus after the company previously sold a similar unit in China. Apple already has several partners to assemble the iPhone in India, and the Tata Group is expected to soon start preparing for the assembly of the upcoming iPhone 15 models.
Wistron’s exit from the business is unlikely to put a big dent in Apple’s production plans in the country, but now the iPhone maker is hoping that the rumored Tata Group setup (via the purchased Wistron factory) will meet its demands and deliver products up to its global standards.
Apple has started to turn away from China and sees markets like Vietnam and India as ideal alternatives. Industry reports suggest that by 2027, Apple will have a quarter of its global iPhone production from India. Apple clearly demands high standards, and now the onus is on the Tata Group to show it can compete with global giants such as Foxconn and Pegatron in its quest to become a source of production for global brands.
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