India has emerged as a major smartphone exporter to the US, accounting for nearly 36% of total imports between January and May 2025 — up from 11% last year — largely driven by Apple iPhone shipments. This surge has significantly reduced China’s share from 82% to 49%, as per data from the US International Trade Commission.
During the same period, India exported 21.3 million smartphones to the US, a threefold year-on-year increase, with shipment value soaring 182% to $9.35 billion, already surpassing 2024’s full-year figure of $7 billion.
Apple CEO Tim Cook recently said most iPhones sold in the US this quarter are likely to be “Made in India.” The company has ramped up manufacturing in India through contract partners like Foxconn, which in May announced a $1.49 billion investment in Tamil Nadu.
Despite this, former US President Donald Trump has expressed displeasure over Apple’s India pivot, threatening a 25% tariff on Indian-made iPhones. Trump reiterated he expects iPhones sold in the US to be made domestically, not in India or elsewhere.
Meanwhile, Vietnam held a distant third, with 8.3 million units exported to the US, accounting for a 14% share.
While Apple still depends heavily on 157 Chinese suppliers, that base is slowly shifting. Indian suppliers grew from 14 to 64, indicating a steady realignment under India’s Production Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme.
According to Union MoS Jitin Prasada, India now has 300 mobile manufacturing units, up from just 2 in 2014-15. Mobile production has jumped 28x to ₹5.45 lakh crore, while exports rose 127x to ₹2 lakh crore over the last decade.