iPhone 11 is now being manufactured locally in India, is price drop imminent

The iPhone 11 is reportedly being manufactured in India at the Foxconn factory near Chennai, making it the first top-of-the-line iPhone to be made in India, triggering expectation of a price cut announcement owing to the benefits of local manufacturing. Previously, Apple was manufacturing the iPhone XR and iPhone SE in India.

It’s being perceived as a boost to Make in India initiative, after reports of a huge $1 Billion investment in India by Foxconn to boost iPhone manufacturing here in India, in a bid to reduce dependence on China.

Apple to boost local iPhone manufacturing through contract manufacturers

While Apple has not officially confirmed the development, the report comes from Economic Times and claims the plan is to step up production in phases. As per earlier reports, Foxconn also plans to expand the Tamil Nadu plant over a period of three years, investing over a $1 billion.

Previous reports claimed Apple was planning to move a fifth of its manufacturing out of China and to India. Senior Apple executives have reportedly been in talks with Government officials to chalk out a plan for expansion.

Apple’s plans to scale up manufacturing through its contract manufacturers — Wistron and Foxconn, to produce roughly $40 billion worth of smartphones. And under the new Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, Apple only needs to produce $10 billion worth of smartphone to reap the benefits, and possibly, pass it down to the Indian customer.

Will iPhones now get cheaper in India?

iPhones have never been the best-seller in India, particularly for being outrageously expensive, sometimes even more so than other markets. The price tag also saw a bump after the Indian Government imposed an additional 10 percent service welfare tax, on top of the existing basic 20 percent import duty, which shot up the price of the latest iPhones, all of which are being imported for sale in India.

With the iPhone 11 now being locally manufactured, the additional 30 percent charge will be waived off for Apple, which could lead to a price drop of the most affordable iPhone in the 11 series, which could be a good starting, considering it is one of the most popular iPhones in India.

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