According to Bloomberg, five factories in India have already been cranked into gear, including two that only just opened. The list includes Foxconn. The iPhone 17 series will now be mass-produced in India ahead of schedule, and for the first time, the entire range will ship from there at launch.

Hon Hai, which still handles most of Job’s Mob’s phone assembly, refused to say anything yesterday.

Previously, most of the iPhones shipped to the US were built in China, but those units are increasingly rolling off Indian lines as Apple tries to sidestep geopolitical headaches and expand capacity. The Trump administration’s ongoing tariff chaos hasn’t helped, with a fresh 50 per cent tariff slapped on Indian imports, even though iPhones are currently exempt.

Trump’s mood swings mean Job’s Mob has little choice but to keep hedging its bets. Despite the tariffs not yet hitting phones, the company is clearly prepping for future shocks.

Foxconn's second-quarter results were unexpectedly steady thanks to decent iPhone 16 sales. Price cuts in China and a US tariff rush saw shipments hold firm when many expected a dip. That momentum is expected to carry through the current quarter with the launch of the iPhone 17 lineup, giving Foxconn's consumer gadgets a welcome lift.

The ramp-up includes Tata’s Hosur plant in Tamil Nadu and Foxconn's base near Bangalore Airport. Both sites have recently come online, and insiders say Tata is quickly becoming a serious player in the Jobs Mob supply chain. Some reckon Tata could handle half of India’s iPhone shipments within two years.

Indian iPhone exports are already surging. From April alone, exports have hit $7.5 billion at factory prices, putting them on track to smash the previous fiscal year’s $17 billion total.

Bloomberg also reckons Apple will start building a cheaper iPhone 17e in India early next year. There are murmurs that preliminary prep for the iPhone 18 is already under way, with more Indian production in the pipeline.