On Friday, from a source that an assembly plant that Apple’s Taiwanese manufacturing partner Wistron Corp is setting up in Bengaluru will focus solely on assembling iPhones. The source said that Apple and the Indian government were still discussing the repatriation of long-term profits from local sales and exports.
On Thursday, the government of Karnataka said that it welcomed the proposal of Apple to begin initial manufacturing operations in tech hub Bengaluru. “Apple’s intentions to manufacture in Bengaluru will foster a
In a statement, the government ofKarnataka said that the intentions of Apple to manufacture in Bengaluru will foster a cutting-edge technology ecosystem and supply chain development in the state, which is critical for India to compete globally.
On Friday, the IT Minister of Karnataka – Priyank Kharge told Reuters that he believes Apple will tentatively begin manufacturing iPhones in the state by the end of the month of April, or beginning of May this year. But, from the second source familiar with matters told Reuters that no agreement or memorandum of understanding(MoU) has so far been finalised with the government of Karnataka.
A spokeswoman of Wistron – Joyce Chou said that the Bengaluru plant is expected to begin producing smartphones sometime in the first half of the year 2017. Joyce Chou declined to comment on whether it would be a captive iPhone assembly site. Cupertino, California-based Apple, is keen to assemble its phones in India, one of the fastest growing smartphone markets in the world.
However, any final decision on manufacturing in India is likely to depend on the willingness of the government to concede ground on the concessions Apple seeks. Last month, Union IT Minister – Ravi Shankar Prasad said that India would consider Apple’s request for incentives with an open mind.
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