Coming just after the US-China 90-day tariff suspension, President Trump spoke with Apple CEO Tim Cook. Commenting on Apple’s plans of manufacturing in India, he said that there was no need to build factories in India, “they can take care of themselves.” Amid hinting a price hike for iPhones, Apple rallied for lowering tariffs since Trump’s first time in office.
“Apple as you know it’s coming in and I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday I said to him Tim you my friend I treated you very good you’re coming in with 500 billion dollars, but now here you’re building all over India ,I don’t want you building in India,” Trump stated.
“You can build in India if you want to take care of India, because India is the highest one of the highest tariff nations in the world it’s very hard to sell into India and they’ve offered us a deal where basically they’re willing to literally charge us no tariff,” he further claimed.
“I said to Tim I said, Tim we’ve treated you really good, we put up with all the plants that you built in China for years, now you got to build in US. We’re not interested in your building in India. India can take care of themselves they’re doing very well.”
Wall Street and Apple investors welcomed the halt on Chinese tariffs, with Apple shares rising 6% on Monday, outperforming the Nasdaq’s 3% gain. The sharp easing of tensions between the US and China triggered a broader rally in American markets.
Apple has been gradually expanding its manufacturing presence in India, assembling certain iPhone models through partners like Foxconn and Wistron. However, the company remains heavily reliant on its established supply chain in China. Trump’s comments underscore the ongoing debate over global manufacturing strategies and the balance between international diversification and domestic investment.
The recent U.S.-China trade agreement that suspended tariffs for 90 days, Trump indicated that Cook plans to increase Apple’s investments in the U.S., potentially building more plants. This aligns with Apple’s previous commitment to invest $500 billion in the U.S. economy. However, this comes just months after Apple announced the Indian manufacturing of iPhones.
In previous remarks, Cook stated that Apple might have to incur over $900 million due to tariffs alone this quarter. Consumers and analysts have been bracing for Apple price increases for more than a month as per Bloomberg reports.