Apple begins making the iPhone 14 in India, marking a big shift in its manufacturing strategy

Apple said Monday it is assembling its flagship iPhone 14 successful India arsenic the U.S. exertion elephantine looks to displacement immoderate accumulation distant from China.

"The caller iPhone 14 lineup introduces groundbreaking caller technologies and important information capabilities. We're excited to beryllium manufacturing iPhone 14 successful India," Apple said successful a statement.

Apple's main iPhone assembler Foxconn is manufacturing the devices astatine its Sriperumbudur mill connected the outskirts of Chennai. 

The Cupertino elephantine has been manufacturing iPhones successful India since 2017 but these were usually older models. This clip with the iPhone 14, Apple is manufacturing its latest exemplary successful India for the archetypal time, adjacent to the device's launch. Apple launched the iPhone 14 earlier this month.

Apple volition merchantability India-produced phones locally but besides export them to different markets globally. Customers successful India volition statesman receiving the locally produced devices successful the adjacent fewer days.

JP Morgan analysts said successful a enactment this period that Apple volition determination 5% of its planetary accumulation for the iPhone 14 to India by precocious 2022. Apple unreality besides marque 25% of each iPhones by 2025 successful India, JP Morgan said.

Apple's absorption connected manufacturing successful India highlights the tech giant's tendency to diversify accumulation distant from China and boost customers successful India, which is presently a tiny marketplace for the company.

Apple inactive relies heavy connected China for the bulk of iPhone production.

But Beijing has persisted with a strategy of lockdowns to power Covid resurgences adjacent arsenic astir of the satellite looks to unfastened their societies. The zero Covid argumentation has disrupted accumulation astatine factories crossed China wherever lockdowns instrumentality spot and highlighted immoderate imaginable anemic spots successful Apple's proviso chain.

India has looked to boost section manufacturing of electronics done incentives.

Meanwhile, Apple has been looking to summation income successful India, the world's second-largest smartphone market. Apple had conscionable a 3.8% marketplace stock successful India past year, arsenic little outgo competitors specified arsenic Samsung and China's Xiaomi proceed to dominate, according to Counterpoint Research.

However, Apple was the top-selling marque successful the ultra-premium segment, which are phones implicit 45,000 Indian rupees ($552), successful the 2nd 4th of this year. That's acknowledgment to beardown momentum of its erstwhile procreation iPhone 13 models.

Apple's iPhone 14 starts astatine 79,900 rupees ($980).

"Apple has a beardown momentum successful India. India is among the 20+ countries successful the satellite wherever the premiumization inclination has conscionable started," Tarun Pathak, probe manager astatine Counterpoint Research, told CNBC.