US President Donald Trump's tariff plans have been disastrous for the wider economy, but particularly destructive for the tech industry, as major companies like Apple are now planning to move their production to India following America's ongoing trade war with China.
Branded 'Liberation Day' by President Trump, the announcement of his worldwide tariffs brought about significant instability in the markets and hit the tech world with a significant blow. This comes as the vast majority of America's favorite gadgets are produced in areas like China, Vietnam, and Cambodia, which were among those struck hardest by the tariffs.
While gamers have managed to escape a price increase for the highly anticipated Nintendo Switch 2 despite a worrying delay for pre-orders, things don't look quite as hopeful for Apple and its iPhone users
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Reports that the same product could now cost more than triple the price following the tariffs certainly didn't go down well, and prices could soar up to $3,500 if Apple decided to move production to the United States, as per the wishes of the president.
However, as reported by The Guardian, the tech giant has seemingly found a middle ground by putting in place the plans to move production of iPhones and other key Apple devices to India from China, avoiding the vast majority of tariffs that would raise the price.
Apple remains incredibly secretive about the manufacturing side of things, and while components for iPhones, Macbooks, and more come from all around the globe, it's estimated that around 90% of phones under the Apple label are made in its Chinese factories.
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The factories in question only recently announced several month-long training plans for humanoid robots to take over the assembly line, although Foxconn - who partnered with the robotics plan - will also operate many of Apple's upcoming manufacturing efforts in India.
Analysts predict that more than 60 million iPhones sold in the US by the end of 2026 will be sourced from India, showing Apple's urgency to create a new solution, and around 600 tons (roughly 1.5 million iPhones) have already been shipped over to the US to maintain inventory.
Away from Trump's announcement that smartphones would be exempt from the heaviest tariffs on China, Apple will still be subject to the base 20% rate on goods imported from the country, which would have raised prices significantly.
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Despite the reveal that Apple had invested $500 billion into American industry there are seemingly no plans for the tech giant to move any meaningful production to the United States, and many experts think it would not only be devastating for customers across the country, but it would also be entirely unsustainable and impractical.
This would certainly be bad news for anyone looking forward to a potential folding iPhone in the near future, although if Apple does manage to achieve their swift production shift from China to India, things could stay the same price-wise for any upcoming releases.