India emerges as primary alternative to China in global smartphone supply chain: Report

New Delhi, Aug 31 (AHN) India has become one of the biggest beneficiaries of a global shift away from concentrated electronics manufacturing in China, with the country’s share of smartphone production rising sharply as companies pursue a 'China plus one' strategy, a new report has said.

The report from Times Kuwait said multinational companies are retaining production in China while developing alternative manufacturing bases and India alongside Vietnam emerged as major beneficiaries.

"By 2025, China, India and Vietnam accounted for more than 90 per cent of global smartphone production,” the report said.

China remained the largest producer, with about 63 per cent of output, but India’s share had risen to roughly 18 per cent by 2025.

"India’s rise has been driven in part by government support, particularly the Production Linked Incentive scheme, which rewards manufacturers for increasing production and meeting localisation targets," the report said.

Domestic mobile phone production has expanded over twentyfold in less than a decade, while exports have surged more than 100-fold.

India now assembles nearly a quarter of Apple's iPhones and has become the largest source of smartphones imported into the United States, while Google is shifting Pixel production toward India and plans to end Chinese manufacturing of some devices by 2027, the report added.

China, however, remains central to the electronics industry being the world's largest smartphone producer and a major source of integrated circuits and display panels.

"The emerging strategy is therefore not to replace China but to reduce dependence on it by developing additional manufacturing centers," the publication said.

Beyond assembling imported components India aims to develop capabilities in circuit boards, camera modules, batteries, displays and semiconductors. Domestic value addition in mobile phones has surged to around 23 per cent, although most components and much of the value still remains imported.

The government has committed about $10 billion through its Semicon India program for developing semiconductors, with further funding targeting chip design, manufacturing equipment, specialty materials and skilled engineers.

“India aims to build a $120 billion to $150 billion semiconductor value chain by 2035,” the publication noted.

—AHN

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