After moving iPhone production out of China, it now appears that Apple has its eye on iPad production. That reports CNBCApple discusses manufacturing some of its iPads in India to help diversify its supply chain.
Apple has been trying to diversify its manufacturing for years amid trade wars between China and the US and rising labor costs in China. More recently, strict covid restrictions sparked nationwide protests that last month forced Apple to reduce production of iPhone 14s there, leading to shipping delays.
CNBC says there may be some complications when moving to India. The lack of people in India with experience in manufacturing complex devices such as iPads and the growing territorial disputes between China and India can create barriers.
Earlier this year, Apple also started production of the iPhone 14 in South India shortly after its launch. It was the first time the tech giant has shifted production from China to India so quickly after releasing a flagship smartphone.
Experts predict that iPhone production in India will also increase in the coming years, albeit slowly.
“I think that in five years 35% [of iPhones] will be manufactured in India,” Gene Munster of Loup Ventures told CNBC. “I think Apple will add iPhone production to other countries outside of India and China in the next five years.”
In the meantime, Nikkei Asia reported in August that Apple discussed moving production of its MacBooks and Apple smartwatches to Vietnam for the first time. According to that report, Apple’s supplier Luxshare had already started testing production of the devices in the country.
