Apple shifts some iPhone 14 production from China to India

A production line in Chennai has begun operation, assembling the iPhone 14 for the domestic Indian market. The move, which marks the first time the company has assembled iPhones outside of China in the same year they were released, is part of a plan to disentangle its manufacturing operations from the Chinese state.

According to a report from analysts at JP Morgan, Apple is aiming to produce a quarter of all iPhone 14s in India by 2025, and the same proportion of all its products outside China by the same date, compared with about 5% now. The company also intends to produce a fifth of all its iPads and Apple Watches, and more than half of all its AirPods, in factories in Vietnam by the same date.

Relations between China and the US have become increasingly strained, causing difficulties for Apple.

GreatFire, which works against Chinese censorship online, noted that the move was an escalation from a previous decision by Apple, which removed the Taiwan flag from emoji keyboards for users in China and Hong Kong.