India has overtaken China for the first time as the leading exporter of smartphones to the United States, fueled by a staggering 240% year‑on‑year surge in production and export volumes in Q2 2025, according to Canalys. Components assembled in India now constitute around 44% of U.S. smartphone imports, up from just 13% a year ago—while China’s share shrank from 61% to roughly 25% during the same period.
In value terms, India shipped 21.3 million smartphones to the U.S. between January and May 2025—more than triple the volume from the prior year—and generated $9.35 billion in export value, exceeding the entire 2024 annual total earlier in the year.
The Make‑In‑India Journey: From Importer to Export Powerhouse
India’s smartphone export growth reflects a decade-long policy push and industrial evolution. In FY 2024–25, smartphone exports soared to $24.14 billion, up 55% from $15.57 billion in FY 2023–24, surpassing petroleum, gems, and diamonds to become India’s top export category by value. Exports to the U.S. alone increased from $2.16 billion in 2022–23 to $5.57 billion in 2023–24, and jumped further to approximately $10.6 billion in FY 2024–25.
This transformation traces back to government initiatives like the Production-Linked Incentive (PLI) scheme, focused infrastructure investment, and a strategic pivot from major global brands like Apple, Samsung, Motorola, Vivo, and Xiaomi toward Indian manufacturing hubs in Karnataka, Tamil Nadu, and Uttar Pradesh.
🔁 Apple Leads the Shift and Trump Tariffs Accelerate It
A decisive driver of this shift has been Apple’s move to ramp up iPhone assembly in India. Apple’s Taiwanese assembly partner, Foxconn, along with Tata Electronics, now produce iPhones in Karnataka and Tamil Nadu. Apple’s India-based iPhone shipments to the U.S. rose 76% in April 2025, reaching nearly 3 million units, while China-sourced shipments fell by the same proportion. In Q2 2025, Apple accounted for the bulk of India’s smartphone exports, helping make smartphones India’s #1 export to the U.S. by value.
These shifts are driven in part by US tariff policy, notably threats of up to 25% tariffs on Chinese-made goods. India currently faces a lower baseline tariff of 10%, making the economics of shifting production more favorable—and a hedge against trade uncertainty.
While iPhones grabbed headlines, Android brands have also pivoted to India. Motorola, manufacturing through India’s Dixon Technologies, exported 1.6 million Android smartphones to the U.S. by May 2025, up from 1 million in 2024; Samsung shipped nearly 945,000 units from Indian factories, up from 645,000 over the previous 12 months. These moves reflect a broader industry pivot away from China toward alternate Asian hubs such as India and Vietnam.
Strategic and Industry Implications
India’s growing share provides companies like Apple an alternative to China-based manufacturing, reducing geopolitical risk and improving supply chain flexibility. India’s policy framework, especially PLI, infrastructure support, and easing of regulatory hurdles—has bolstered domestic electronics production and global export competitiveness.
China still leads globally in smartphone manufacturing, but its U.S. export share has declined sharply, from over 60% in Q2 2024 to about 25% in mid-2025. Smartphones have surpassed traditional export sectors, including petroleum and diamonds, and now account for India’s highest-value goods sent to the U.S.
Analysts expect India’s manufacturing share to continue rising—Apple aims for 25% of global iPhone production in India by 2027, up from about 15% currently.
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