Trump pressures Apple to halt its expansion in India

Donald Trump revealed Thursday that he asked Apple CEO Tim Cook to halt the company's plans to manufacture iPhones in India. During a press conference in Qatar, the president explained that his concern stems from his belief that Apple should keep its production in the United States, or at least avoid moving it to another developing country.

"I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday," Trump commented. "Tim we've treated you really good, we put up with all the plants that you built in China for years ... we're not interested in you building in India, India can take care of themselves," he added.

For the moment, Apple has not responded publicly to these statements, although its shares fell by 1 % in pre-market trading following the president's comments.

India, the new production hub for Apple

Trump's warning comes at a decisive moment for Apple, which is in the midst of restructuring its global supply chain. Faced with increasingly deteriorating trade relations between the United States and China, the company has initiated a strategic shift aimed at diversifying the location of its production plants. Under its plans, iPhones destined for the U.S. market will begin to be assembled in India, while devices such as iPads and electronic accessories will be manufactured in Vietnam.

This shift represents a significant break with Apple's industrial model, which has been perfected over the years and is based almost exclusively on manufacturing in China. However, Trump's statements put the company in an awkward position: it seeks to reduce its dependence on China but now faces political disapproval for moving some of its production to other emerging economies, such as India.

A trade pact amid tensions

Despite his rejection of Apple's relocation, Trump also hinted that the United States is negotiating a new trade agreement with India to get the Asian country to eliminate the high tariffs it currently imposes on U.S. products, which has been a sticking point between the two governments.

India is known for having one of the strictest tariff regimes in the world, especially in the technology sector.