Apple Tops $10B in India as Manufacturing Shifts Fast

They queued for the store opening, but the bigger story is happening on factory floors and balance sheets. Apple has just cleared a new threshold in India: annual sales for the 12 months ending in March topped $10 billion, a first for the company in the market.

This is the first time Apple has topped $10 billion in annual sales in India.

That figure marks steady momentum — up from roughly $9 billion the year before, and a striking 67% increase compared with three years earlier. Most of the revenue still comes from iPhones, yet tablets and laptops are finally chipping in, according to an industry source who spoke to Bloomberg.

How big is $10 billion in context? It’s important, but not towering. Apple’s quarterly sales in China reached about $18.8 billion over a three-month span, underscoring how much larger some markets remain. Still, what makes the India milestone notable is the backdrop: a rupee that has slid roughly 10% against the dollar since early 2025 and a tax structure that tends to push retail prices above U.S. levels.

Take the iPhone 17. The base model is listed at ₹82,900 in India, roughly $870 at current exchange rates — well above the $799 U.S. sticker. Apple has countered with a mix of tactics: bank rebate programs, student discounts, and trade-in deals for older devices. Those moves look deliberate. They are nudging price-sensitive buyers to upgrade, and the sales numbers suggest the approach is paying off.

There’s another thread running through this story: manufacturing. Cupertino’s leadership has been trying for years to diversify beyond China. It’s still the dominant hub. Yet by March, about a quarter of new iPhones were being assembled in India — an estimated 55 million units in the most recent year, up from 36 million the year prior. That isn’t just production growth; it’s a sign of strategic intent.

Why does that matter? Because India is angling to become a global manufacturing base, not merely a local market. New policy moves could accelerate that push. Officials are reportedly weighing an extension of tax exemptions on manufacturing equipment and component imports from 2031 to 2041. The component exemption applies to parts used to produce devices destined for export, a direct incentive for companies that want to build phones in India and ship them worldwide.

If those rules change, India could attract even more of the Apple supply chain — and fast. Apple itself has floated ambitious goals privately, including the idea of assembling all U.S.-bound iPhones in India. That’s a tall order, with logistics and supplier capacity to expand, but it’s no longer a fanciful notion. The needle has already moved: more factories, more local content, more workers trained for smartphone assembly.

There are still hurdles. Local taxes and currency swings pinch margins and keep prices higher for consumers. And China’s ecosystem — from component makers to logistics networks — remains unmatched in scale. But the combination of market demand, promotional pricing tactics, rising local production and potential policy incentives is changing the calculus for Apple and its rivals.

So what should we watch next? Keep an eye on factory output numbers, component exemptions, and the fine print of rebate and trade-in schemes. Those will tell us whether India is simply growing as a market, or whether it’s becoming the next critical node in the global smartphone supply chain.