‘Apple Will Realise…: Sources On Trump’s ‘Not In India’ Call To Tim Cook

New Delhi:

US President Donald Trump‘s ‘don’t want you building in India’ exhortation to Apple boss Tim Cook was played down Thursday night, with government sources saying there is significant value for the global tech giant if it chooses to expand iPhone production in the country.

India has a manufacturing ecosystem that is ‘good for global smartphone companies’, and a company like Apple will see the competitiveness from domestic production, sources said.

‘India has become a significant player in the smartphone production space… if companies recognise the value of manufacturing in India, they will continue on that path’, sources said.

Sources also said any company like Apple – which has said a majority of iPhones sold in the US from the June quarter onwards will likely be ‘made in India’ – must acknowledge that edge.

‘Their investment decisions will be based on their own competitiveness…’Sources within Apple, meanwhile, have said the company has no plan to change its India investment plans based on what Trump said. Company executives told news agency PTI the proposal to set up a major manufacturing facility in the country will go ahead as scheduled.

Earlier today the United States President said he had told Mr Cook he does not want him “building in India” and that “India can take care of themselves”. The comments were made at a business forum in Qatar, the last stop on Trump’s whirlwind three-nation West Asia tour.