Apple’s primary India suppliers Foxconn and Tata shipped practically $2 billion price of iPhones to the US in March, an all-time excessive, because the U.S. firm airlifted units to bypass President Donald Trump’s impending tariffs, customs knowledge exhibits.
The smartphone maker stepped up manufacturing in India and chartered cargo flights to ferry 600 tons of iPhones to the US to make sure ample stock in one in all its greatest markets on concern Trump’s tariffs would push up prices.
In April, the U.S. administration imposed 26% duties on imports from India, a lot decrease than the greater than 100% China was going through on the time. Trump has since paused most duties, aside from China for 3 months.
Foxconn, Apple’s primary India provider, exported smartphones price $1.31 billion in March, its highest ever for a single month and equal to shipments for January and February mixed, in keeping with commercially obtainable customs knowledge reviewed by Reuters.
This included Apple iPhone 13, 14, 16 and 16e fashions, and took Foxconn’s complete shipments from India to the US this yr to $5.3 billion.
Exports from Tata Electronics, one other Apple provider, stood at $612 million in March, round 63% larger than the earlier month, and included iPhone 15 and 16 fashions.
Apple, Foxconn and Tata didn’t instantly reply to requests for remark. Reuters is the primary to report the cargo particulars.
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Customs knowledge confirmed all Foxconn shipments to the US in March have been by air from the Chennai Air Cargo terminal, and landed at varied places, together with Los Angeles and New York, with Chicago receiving the bulk.
Trump later granted exclusions from steep tariffs on smartphones and another electronics imported largely from China, however later indicated that these exemptions will probably be short-lived.
To expedite shipments, Apple lobbied Indian airport authorities to chop the time wanted to clear customs at Chennai airport within the southern state of Tamil Nadu, to 6 hours down from 30 hours.
Not less than six cargo jets have been used within the operation which one supply described was a option to “beat the tariffs”.
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