US President Donald Trump’s dream to have Apple manufacture iPhones in America may end up pushing the smartphone’s price to thrice its current level! Market analysts indicate that manufacturing iPhones in the United States rather than India would result in a threefold increase in costs, raising the price from $1,000 to $3,000 per unit. The comments come on the back of Trump’s Thursday announcement regarding his conversation with Apple CEO Tim Cook, wherein he asked Apple to restrict its Indian expansion plans.China currently handles 80% of Apple’s manufacturing operations, providing employment to approximately 5 million people. Tim Cook’s recent announcement regarding manufacturing in India indicates a strategic shift of operations from China to India to establish a diverse supply chain network.Also Read | Donald Trump warns Apple about ‘Make in India’, will Tim Cook-led iPhone maker listen?A potential relocation of Apple’s manufacturing operations from India to the US or other Western nations would result in increased labour expenses, leading to higher production costs. Apple would likely need to accept reduced profit margins to maintain competitiveness, despite the advantages of operating closer to Western consumer bases.In response to Trump’s statement, the Director General of MCCIA, Prashant Girbane, told ANI: “A lot better thought would prevail both in the Apple company and the US administration.” They would realise the following facts. First, if they decide to manufacture in the USA as compared to China, India, or Vietnam, a $1,000 iPhone would cost $3,000. Are American consumers willing to pay $3,000 for that iPhone?”“The manufacturing and jobs are not moving away from the USA to India, they are moving from China to India so that they would have a diversified supply chain, and American companies and consumers are protected right from the hegemony of one country that is not most friendly with them in terms of trade.,” Girbane added.Despite the present controversy surrounding this statement, Girbane said that the situation is expected to normalise eventually.Also Read | Donald Trump says India has offered a trade deal with ‘literally no tariffs’According to NK Goyal, TEMA Chairman, “By now, the world and India know that we have to wait for some time before we react to the statements made by the US President. As far as Apple is concerned, they have turned out more than 22 billion dollars worth of iPhones from India in the last one year. Apple has three manufacturing facilities in India and plans for two more.”Goyal further elaborated that Apple had already initiated partial relocation of its manufacturing from China to India. “It will be the commercial judgment of Apple whether to start manufacturing. They partly moved to India from China. If Apple moves out of India, it will be in big losses because the tariff restrictions are coming up globally and are subject to change very often. We firmly believe, as the Telecom Equipment Manufacturing Association, Apple will not go out of India,” Goyal said.Jaideep Ghosh, who previously served as a partner at KPMG, noted that iPhone production in India reached Rs 1.75 lakh crores in FY 2025, ending March, an increase from Rs 1.2 lakh crores in the previous year. “Apple ecosystem is quite important for India,” he stated.He cautioned about potential consequences if Apple withdraws from India in the future, particularly affecting the country’s markets and job sector. “It’s not easy to begin manufacturing iPhones in the US,” he further remarked.
