Apple Inc. exported iPhones worth over ₹1.5 lakh crore (approximately $17.4 billion) from India in the last fiscal year, highlighting the tech giant’s ongoing efforts to reduce its dependence on China, according to India’s Technology Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw.
Driven by this surge, India’s overall smartphone exports crossed ₹2 lakh crore in the fiscal year ending March 2025 — a 54% jump compared to the previous year, Vaishnaw said during a press briefing in New Delhi.
While Apple faces a decline in iPhone sales in China, it continues to see significant growth in the Indian market.
The company has been ramping up its presence in India, especially after strict COVID-19 lockdowns disrupted production at its largest manufacturing facility in China.
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This strategic shift aligns with Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s vision to turn India into a global manufacturing powerhouse.
Government incentives have played a key role in this transition, helping companies like Foxconn and Tata Electronics — which acquired Wistron and Pegatron’s India operations — to expand local iPhone production capabilities.
Apple hasn’t officially commented, but experts say former U.S. President Trump’s tariff policies, including a proposed 50% hike on Chinese imports, are pushing the company to diversify production to India and Southeast Asia.
According to a report by Bloomberg Apple is stockpiling inventory and sending more India-made iPhones to the U.S., even as the Trump administration plans a 27% tariff on Indian goods.
Despite the shift, about 80% of Apple’s iPhones are still manufactured in China. Experts believe that completely moving away from China will be a long and expensive process, given the country’s deeply integrated supply chain network — a key advantage that strengthens President Xi Jinping’s position in global trade talks.
