Apple said on Monday it will manufacture its iPhone 14 in India, as manufacturers shift production from China amid geopolitical tensions and pandemic restrictions that disrupted supply chains for many industries. Apple said in a statement: "The new iPhone 14 lineup offers new leading technologies and important security capabilities, we are excited to manufacture the iPhone 14 in India." Apple also unveiled the latest iPhone lineup earlier this month, which will have improved cameras, faster processors, and longer-lasting batteries at the same prices as last year's model. India is the world's second-largest smartphone market after China, but Apple iPhone sales have struggled to capture a large market share against cheaper smartphones from competitors.

The tech company has heavily bet on India, where it first started manufacturing the iPhone SE in 2017 and has since assembled a number of iPhone models there. Apple also launched its online store for India two years ago, but the pandemic delayed its plans, according to local media reports. On the other hand, the latest model will be shipped by Foxconn, a major iPhone assembler, whose facilities are located in the suburbs of Chennai, a city in southern India. Apple is likely to shift about 5% of its iPhone 14 production to India later this year, raising it to 25% by 2025, according to a JP Morgan report cited by the Press Trust of India news agency.

In the same context, analysts expect nearly a quarter of all Apple products to be manufactured outside China by 2025, compared to about 5% now. The report said supply chain risks like strict COVID-19 lockdowns seen in China are likely the driver for these relocation efforts that will continue over the next two or three years. Saniam Chourasia, an analyst at Canalys, said: "Apple has been trying to diversify its supply chain for some time, but these efforts grew over the past two years due to trade sanctions between the United States and China."

Last year, the tech giant produced about 7 million iPhones in India. He added that this news is likely to lead to a significant increase in smartphones made by Apple in India, stating that the plan to manufacture more iPhones in India may also push Apple to lower its prices for the Indian market, making it more competitive. Chourasia said in this regard: "You can adopt a stricter pricing strategy if you manufacture locally."