India: Laptop import ban could force Apple & Co. to produce locally
New Delhi is taking an increasingly aggressive approach to its "Make in India" campaign. Now the import of MacBooks and other laptops could be restricted.
During a visit to New Delhi a few years ago: Apple CEO Tim Cook (left) with Indian Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
(Image: dpa, Government Of India/Handout)
It is widely known that the Indian government wants more advanced hardware to be manufactured directly on the subcontinent. After this already seems to be working well for Apple's iPhone, for example, the "Make in India" program is now to be boosted for PC production as well. To achieve this, the country is prepared to put the thumbscrews on companies: As Reuters reports, there could be import bans in the foreseeable future. This was announced by government sources.
Carrot and stick for Apple & Co.
The import restrictions could begin as early as January – and are set to include desktop PCs and tablets as well as laptops and notebooks. The explicit aim is to motivate companies such as Apple to also manufacture these device categories on the subcontinent, according to informed sources. The industry is currently said to generate sales of between 7.4 and 9.2 billion euros per year in India and is now facing cutbacks. New Delhi, on the other hand, is prepared to provide up to 1.85 billion euros in subsidies for local PC production.
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However, a final decision has apparently not yet been made. "Consultations with all sides" will start this month and could delay import bans "by a few months", it was said. Manufacturers such as HP, Dell, Apple, Samsung and Lenovo currently dominate the market. Two thirds of demand is covered by imports, primarily from China. The entire IT hardware market is said to be worth around 18.5 billion euros, of which only 4.6 billion is currently accounted for by Indian production. Apple's strategy of also manufacturing top devices such as the iPhone 16 Pro in India has already brought the country massive sales growth. No company has grown as much domestically as Apple in the past 50 years, it was said.
Trade agreements make import ban difficult
The cheapest PC products are apparently not to be manufactured in India. The company is working on "minimum quality standards" for laptops, notebooks and tablets that are to be produced in the country. The import ban must also be made compatible with international trade agreements that India has concluded. Certain customs duties are therefore prohibited. However, there are said to still be "some options" to at least restrict imports.
It is possible that the Indian government is at least knocking on Apple's door: The company is still very interested in moving more production out of China. In addition to India, Vietnam is also an increasingly important production market. As usual, Apple is combining production with sales –. A new flagship store was recently opened in India in Mumbai. The company is focusing on the rapidly growing middle class.
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