Apple Increases Production in India Amid China's Tariff Bomb... Trump Issues 'Warning'

Trump Orders iPhones to be 'Made in America'

Apple's Expansion in India 'Not Wanted'

Emphasis on Building iPhone Production Base in the US

US President Donald Trump has issued a warning to Apple, which is considering moving iPhone production from China to India. Trump reiterated his stance that iPhones should be produced in the United States.

According to major foreign media on the 15th (local time), President Trump, who is touring the Middle East, told reporters in Qatar that "there was a bit of a problem with Tim Cook (Apple CEO) yesterday."

The 'problem' mentioned by President Trump refers to Apple's plan to move the production base for iPhones intended for the US market from China to India. Apple had previously announced plans to shift its production base to India in response to President Trump's unprecedented 'tariff bomb' against China.

President Trump mentioned Apple's recent plan to invest $500 billion (about 700 trillion won) in the US, saying, "You come to the US with $500 billion, but now you're building factories all over India. I don't want you (Cook CEO) to build factories in India," he said.

In the first quarter of this year, more than half of the iPhones sold in the US were produced in India. In the second quarter, most of the iPhones for the US market are expected to be filled with production from India. The industry expects that by the end of next year, more than 60 million iPhones sold in the US will be sourced from Indian factories.

Cook CEO said during the earnings announcement earlier this month, "From June, most of the iPhones sold in the US will be produced in India, and iPads, Macs, Apple Watches, and AirPods will be produced in Vietnam."

However, President Trump said, "We treated you (Cook CEO) really well and tolerated all the factories built in China for years. Now you have to build (factories) for us in the US," adding, "We are not interested in you building (factories) in India and want you to build them in the US."

He added that Apple would increase production in the US, but did not mention specific grounds for this. Apple is currently not producing iPhones in the US.

Wedbush Securities previously predicted that if iPhones were produced in the US, the device price could soar to $3,500 (about 4.9 million won).

Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi has emphasized his country as a smartphone manufacturing hub. To bypass the high tariffs announced by President Trump, Apple transported $2 billion (about 2.8 trillion won) worth of iPhones from India to the US in March.

Kim Dae-young, Hankyung.com reporter kdy@hankyung.com