Trump Says He Pushed Back Against Apple Over India Manufacturing Plans

US President Donald Trump on Thursday said he doesn't want Apple investing to build factories all over India, while doubling down on his claims that India has promised to drop tariffs on the US.

"We have Apple coming in. I had a little problem with (CEO) Tim Cook. I said to him, Tim you’re my friend, you’re coming in with $500 billion but building all over India, I don’t want you to build all over India," he said, while speaking to the media after a meeting with business leaders in Doha, Qatar.

"You can build in India if you want to take care of India, (but) India is one of the highest tariffed nations in the world, it's very hard to sell into India. They’ve offered us a deal where basically they’re literally willing to charge us no tariff, so we go from the highest tariff. You couldn’t even do business in India because the tariff is so high. We’re not even the top 30 in India, to the lowest. They’ve said there won’t be any tariffs now," Trump said.

On May 6 as well, Trump had said India is an example of a country that has "agreed to drop tariffs to nothing".

"They would have never done that for anybody else but me," he had said on the sidelines of a meeting with Canadian Prime Minister Mark Carney.

Trump's comments increasingly signal to a deal where India has offered to drop tariffs to zero on most lines. This is also in line with India's deal with the UK, where India has offered reductions on 90% of tariff lines, with 85% becoming fully tariff-free within a decade.

"India–US trade deal may be on the cards, with Trump saying India has agreed to cut tariffs on most goods. As Trump always blamed India’s high tariffs for the trade deficit, India could offer to make 90% of US exports tariff-free from day one, using a "zero-for-zero" approach—cutting tariffs on all goods, except autos and agriculture. But the deal must ensure strict reciprocity, with both sides eliminating tariffs equally," said Ajay Srivastava, founder of think-tank Global Trade Research Initiative.

Apple's moves have also pointed towards an increasing reliance on India as a manufacturing hub, signaling a move away from China.

During the company's recent earnings call, Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook had announced that the company will source the majority of the iPhones sold in the US from India in the June quarter. China will produce the vast majority of the devices for other markets, amid uncertainty over tax tariffs, he had said.