Donald Trump asks Apple to halt 'Make in India' plans. Piyush Goyal's US trip in vain?

While Union Commerce and Industry Minister Piyush Goyal is leading a team of senior Indian officials to Washington to finalise bilateral trade agreement (BTA) with the United States, it seems like President Donald Trump has other plans. While India is keen to improve its trade relations with the United States, Trump, who has launched a tariff war, is pushing for local manufacturing.

 

Trump, who is on a tri-nation Middle East tour, said in Doha on Thursday that he told Apple CEO Tim Cook to "stop producing iPhones in India". Apple, the American tech giant,  has no smartphone production in the US - most of its iPhones are made in China, while facilities in India produce around 40 million units per year (about 15 per cent of Apple's annual output).

 

"I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday. I said to him, Tim, you're my friend. I treated you very well. You're coming in with $500 billion (investment). But now I hear you're building all over India. I don't want you building in India if you want to take care of India," Trump said on Thursday. Apple had earlier this year pledged to spend $500 billion in the US over the next four years. Trump suggested that Apple could manufacture phones in India to cater to the Indian market. "You can build in India if you want, to take care of India," he said.

 

Reportedly, Indian government officials spoke with Apple's executives soon after Trump's comments and the US firm assured the government that "Apple's investment plans for India are intact", a senior official told PTI. 

 

Union Minister Ashwini Vaishnaw had in April announced that iPhones worth Rs 1.5 lakh crore were exported from India in the fiscal year 2025.

 

However, Trump's comments come ahead of Union Minister Piyush Goyal's four-day tour to the US to discuss bilateral ties. The four-day talks come against the backdrop of both countries exploring the possibility of an interim trade arrangement in goods to secure "early mutual wins" ahead of finalising the first phase of the trade agreement by fall (September-October) this year.

 

The main issues that will figure in the negotiations include market access, rules of origin, and non-tariff barriers, PTI reported. India's proposal to impose retaliatory duty on certain US products over American tariffs on steel and aluminium would also figure in the BTA deliberations, reports said.

India