Apple's India exports to emerge unscathed from Trump tariffs
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The Trump administration in April exempted smartphones, computers, and other electronics from reciprocal tariffs, in a major reprieve to companies such as Apple and Nvidia. Most of these electronic devices are not made in the US.
India currently accounts for more than a fifth of global iPhone production and has already surpassed China to become the top supplier of the device to the US market.
A higher US tariff on India – if the exemptions go – could potentially make locally assembled iPhones globally pricey compared to Apple products made in Vietnam or China.
Apple has ramped up production in India over the past four years as it tries to diversify away from China in the aftermath of harsh coronavirus restrictions. The US tech giant's expansion has become the poster child for Modi's flagship 'Make in India' drive – the government has constantly used Apple's growing manufacturing in the country as an example to woo global investors including Tesla and chipmakers such as Micron Technology.
A salesperson speaks to a customer at an Apple reseller store in Mumbai, India September 1, 2021. Photo: Reuters
The US Commerce Department is currently probing sectors deemed vital to national security, such as semiconductors, under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act. Until those are complete, there will be no levies on smartphone exports to the US. That includes iPhones made in India.
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