Apple exports 97.6% of iPhones to US from India amid tariffs: Report
In a bid to preempt higher tariffs on imports from China, Apple's exports to the US from India made up 97.6% of all iPhone exports in March 2025, up from 81.9% in the three months to February 2025, according to a S&P Global Market Intelligence report.S&P said iPhone exports increased 219% in March as Apple ramped up production in India as the tariff announcements, and eventual trade turmoil, loomed large over Apple.The Trump administration announced a 10% base tariff on imports from most countries, and additional reciprocal tariffs on countries it runs a trade deficit with, including China and Vietnam which exports majority of consumer electronics products to the US.
With Beijing retaliating against the US action, the reciprocal tariff on China has gone up to 245% for some products. However, consumer electronics items including smartphones and laptops have been exempted from reciprocal tariffs. The Trump administration will announce special tariffs for these products, sometime in May.
Following the reprieve, S&P said Apple is planning to replace entirety of its sourcing of iPhone for the US market from mainland China, from India in 2026. The move marks a further scale-up on its bet on the South Asian market as a production hub, despite potential challenges.
"The move requires substantial investment and collaboration from contract manufacturers including
Tata Electronics
, supported by India's production-linked incentive schemes. While India has streamlined foreign investment processes, actualising these investments could take months," S&P said.
Tata Electronics, Pegatron and
Foxconn
Hon Hai are the three iPhone suppliers from India.
The market research firm said expanding
iPhone production capacity
would enhance India's reputation in global supply chain, particularly if a US-India bilateral trade agreement is secured by the third quarter of 2025, despite potential challenges like labour strikes.
Apple's market for iPhones in the US is also much larger than what it has been exporting from India. S&P said iPhone sales in the US were 75.9 million units in 2024, while exports in March from India came up to 3.1 million units.
This suggests a need to double shipments either through new capacity or by redirecting shipments bound for the domestic market. Production in India is also largely dependent on components sourced from China, which made up 71.3% of all shipments from China in the first quarter of 2025.
A new facility of Tata Electronics in Hosur, Tamil Nadu will soon start exporting iPhones for Apple. Foxconn has also invested$2.6 billion in a new plant in Bengaluru, set to become operational from May, which will substantially increase export capacities for Apple.
To hit the March target, Apple primarily redirected shipments bound for other regions to the United States.
According to data from a leading market research firm who did not wish to be named, iPhone exports from India to the US hit 4.43 million units in March, a sharp jump from 1.71 million units in February 2025. Apple's exports to other regions in the same period went down marginally for some regions, but drastically for others.
For example, iPhone exports to Japan went down from 170,000 in February to 38,000 units in March. Similarly, exports to the Czech Republic went down to 141,000 to 30,000 units in March. Exports to some markets like Australia, Chile, Israel and others were stopped altogether, with shipments going to those regions from China instead, according to data accessed by ET.
S&P said if the tariffs on China remain higher than others in the long run, other firms may also choose to diversify away from China, resulting in "a degree of regionalisation without localisation."
That said, key electronics manufacturing regions - Vietnam (9.9% of global supplies), India (8.4%) and South Korea (1.2%) all lag significantly behind China's 76.6% share, S&P said.
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