Last month, in the thick of the confusion surrounding President Trump’s tariffs extravaganza, it was reported that while Apple had flown out three iPhone-packed cargo airplanes out of China and India, it had also ramped up production in India.
Now, despite Apple’s sidestepping when asked to talk specifics in its recent financial results call, we have a clearer picture of what that ramp-up actually looked like.
76% up, 76% down
In a report published today by Canalys (via CNBC), the research firm estimated that iPhone exports from India to the U.S. hit 3 million units last month, which accounted for a whopping 76% increase from April last year.
Still, that number was down from the 4,400,000 units Apple shipped from India in March, a sign the company saw trouble coming and acted before the situation escalated.
By comparison, iPhones shipped from China to the U.S. in April totaled 4,300,000 units, and just 900,000 in May. The latter, interestingly, accounted for a 76% drop year-on-year, precisely the percentage that Apple increased its iPhone exports from India.
As reported by CNBC, Le Xuan Chiew, a research manager at Omdia, commented on today’s report:
“This latest trade war with China, is the type of disturbance that Apple has long been trying to prepare itself for.”
He also added that Apple had first started divesting from its Chinese supply chain in favor of India during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Today’s report comes at a delicate moment for Apple. While the company is clearly making progress on diversifying its manufacturing footprint, it’s doing so under the shadow of President Trump’s recent threat to impose a 25% tariff on iPhones not made in the U.S.
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