Foxconn has begun importing iPhone 17 elements from China to India for trial manufacturing, marking a major step forward of the machine’s anticipated launch in September.
Based on customs information reviewed by The Economic Times, Foxconn, Apple’s main contract assembler, started receiving shipments of crucial elements resembling show assemblies, cowl glass, mechanical housings, and built-in rear digital camera modules at its Indian services in June. These elements account for roughly 10% of Foxconn’s whole imports from China for the month, with the rest allotted to different iPhone fashions, together with the iPhone 14 and iPhone 16.
Trade consultants cited by The Financial Occasions interpret the size of the shipments as indicative of early-stage trial manufacturing. Mass manufacturing is outwardly scheduled to start in August, in time for launch in September.
India has already begun to take part in Apple’s New Product Introduction (NPI) course of, which governs the early levels of recent mannequin growth and beforehand occurred solely in China; it joined the NPI course of for the iPhone 16 and iPhone 16 Plus in 2024. This allowed manufacturing to start almost concurrently in each international locations, a major shift from the iPhone 14, when manufacturing in India started six weeks after the China ramp-up.
For the iPhone 17, Apple is reportedly focusing on same-day manufacturing begins in each China and India for the primary time. Sources cited by DigiTimes counsel that Apple intends to deepen its manufacturing footprint in India as a part of its plan to diversify its provide chain, with Foxconn enjoying a central function underneath India’s Manufacturing Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme.
Nonetheless, the trouble has encountered challenges. Current reviews have pointed to the latest mass departure of Chinese engineers from Foxconn’s Indian services. These people had been liable for manufacturing unit design, precision machining, and worker coaching, that are important capabilities through the early phases of iPhone meeting. An government quoted by The Financial Occasions stated:
Chinese language engineers are essential as a result of iPhone 17 manufacturing includes complicated precision machining of many small elements, and even a 1mm distinction could cause a product to fail high quality testing. They’re wanted to coach workers on the intricate meeting processes and particular molds for elements.
Regardless of these problems, the Indian authorities apparently stays optimistic. A supply quoted by the Press Trust of India (PTI) stated that the return of Chinese language technical employees to China could have “no influence” on the manufacturing of the iPhone 17.
The supply added that Apple continues to scale manufacturing in accordance with plan and famous that import bottlenecks for equipment and tools wanted for large-scale manufacturing have begun to ease. The whole iPhone 17 lineup is anticipated to launch within the fall.