India is now the top U.S smartphone supplier
Canalys data revealed that smartphones assembled in India accounted for 44 per cent of the 27.1 million units shipped to the US during the quarter, up from 13 per cent in the same period last year. In contrast, China's share of US-bound smartphone shipments fell to 25 per cent, down from 61 per cent.
The company reported the volume of made-in-India smartphones shipped to the US rose 240 per cent year-on-year, driven primarily by Apple, with Samsung and Motorola also increasing their US-focused manufacturing in the country.
Vietnam, which houses a major portion of Samsung's production, ranked second with 30 per cent.
Sanyam Chaurasia, Principal Analyst at Canalys noted the shift came due to Apple's ongoing efforts to diversify its manufacturing base away from China in a bid to mitigate the looming threat of US tariffs. The iPhone-maker significantly increased production in India over the past year, with much of the output bound for the US market. The tech giant has started assembling Pro models of the iPhone 16 series in India, although large-scale production for the US still relies on facilities in China.
Despite the shift, total smartphone shipments to the US grew just 1 per cent. Apple's shipments declined by 11 per cent to 13.3 million units, while Samsung reported 38 per cent annual growth reaching 8.3 million units driven by its Galaxy A-series.
'Apple built up its inventories rapidly toward the end of Q1 and sought to maintain this level in Q2', said Runar Bjorhovde, Senior Analyst at Canalys. However, Bjorhovde noted that the market's modest overall growth 'despite vendors frontloading inventory' to mitigate the impact of potential tariffs later this year highlights 'tepid demand in an increasingly pressured economic environment'.
Apple's international manufacturing ambitions have drawn sharp criticism from US President Donald Trump in recent months, who warned that iPhones not built in the US could face a 25 per cent tariff. Indeed, Trump told Apple CEO Tim Cook in May: 'We are not interested in you building in India.'
Source: Mobile World Live
Image Credit: Stock Image
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