Donald Trump speaks alongside the CEO of Apple Tim Cook (L) at the first meeting of the American WorkForce Policy Advisory Board in the dining room of the White House in Washington, DC, on March 6, 2019.
Saul Loeb | AFP | Getty images
President Donald Trump said on Thursday that he said that he said Apple The CEO Tim Cook, that he does not want the technology giant to build his products in India, taking fire to business movements to diversify the production of China and exhorting him to pivot in the United States.
“I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday,” said Trump. “I said to him:” My friend, I treated you very well. You come here with $ 500 billion, but now I hear that you are building all India. “I don’t want you to build in India.”
Trump was referring to Apple’s commitment to an investment of $ 500 billion in the United States, which was announced in February.
Apple has increased production in India in order to make around 25% of global iPhones in the country in the coming years, as it seeks to reduce dependence on China, where around 90% of its flagship smartphone is currently assembled.
“I said to Tim, I said, ‘Tim look, we have really treated you, we have supported all the plants that you have been building in China for years, now you are building. We are not interested in building in India, India can take care of themselves … We want you to build here”, “said Trump.
The American president added that Apple would “increase” his production in the United States, without disclosing other details.
CNBC contacted Apple.
Trump comments on the American technology giant while discussing Washington’s wider trade relations with India.
Trump said India is “one of the highest pricing nations in the world”, adding that the country has offered an agreement in the United States where “they are ready to literally charge us any price”.
Under the commercial protectionist policies of the White House revealed in April, Trump imposed a so-called “reciprocal rate” of 26% on Indian products, which was temporarily lowered until July.
The main partner of the Apple Assembly in India, Foxconn, received approval from the Indian government on Monday to build a semiconductor factory in the country in a joint venture with HCL Group.
Apple has spent decades strengthening its supply chain in China, but turned to other countries such as Vietnam and India to extend its production capacity.
But experts generally agree that the movement of iPhone production in the United States would be very unlikely due to the final price of the final product. Variable estimates put the cost of an iPhone between $ 1,500 and $ 3,500, if it was made in the United States
Apple is currently manufacturing very few products in the United States, the Cupertino giant produced the Mac Pro in the United States in February, he announced that he would launch a manufacturing installation in Texas to produce servers for Apple Intelligence, its AI system.
