Apple Needs To Produce In India To Be Competitive, Says CEO Cook
Apple Inc. is working on the entire ecosystem in India, from developer to the market to operations, Cook says.
Apple Inc. chief executive Tim Cook said that the company is producing in India with a practical view and sees enormous opportunity in the country. In terms of the operational or supply-chain side, he underscored that one needs to produce in India to be competitive from a pragmatic point of view.
The iPhone maker's chief said he is "very pleased" with the strong double-digit growth in India where the tech giant reported a record revenue in the March quarter.
"We did grow strong double-digit. And so, we were very, very pleased with that. It was a new March quarter revenue record for us," the chief executive officer said in a conference call after reporting Apple's quarterly earnings on Thursday. "I see it as an incredibly exciting market and it's a major focus for us."
Apple is expanding its channels and working on the developer ecosystem as well, Cook said. "And we've been very pleased that there is a rapidly growing base of developers there."
The California-based company is working on the entire ecosystem in India, from developer to the market to operations, Cook said. "I could not be more excited and enthusiastic about it."
Over the past 18 months, Apple has doubled down on India, both as a retail market and a manufacturing base, while also growing its corporate footprint. Up until financial year 2023, Apple sold its products through its online store in India and a variety of indirect distribution channels, such as wholesalers and resellers. In April last year, it opened stores in New Delhi and Mumbai.
NDTV Profit had reported earlier that Apple's India entity posted a nearly 50% spike in revenue in fiscal 2023, taking its top line to about Rs 50,000 crore. Profit rose 76% year-on-year to Rs 2,229.6 crore, according to data sourced from Tofler.
Earnings And China Outlook
The profit for the company topped Wall Street projections in the period, while it also announced the biggest stock buyback in US history. The tech giant's board approved an additional $110 billion in share repurchases.
The jump in the share buyback can be attributed to a generation of free cash flow, Luca Maestri, chief financial officer of Apple, said in the conference call. "For the last couple of years, we were doing $90 billion. Now, we're doing $110 billion."
After this, the company will reassess and see what is the optimal capital structure at that point in time, according to Maestri.
Though revenue fell 4.3% to $90.8 billion in the March quarter, that was better than the $90.3 billion predicted by analysts.
Apple's shares gained as much as 7.9% in extended trading on Thursday after the earnings were announced.
Even as revenue for the iPhone maker fell 8% in China, Cook expressed optimism in the long run for the nation. The fall in revenue is an acceleration from the previous quarter, he said, pointing out that the primary driver was the sales of the iPhone. "I maintain a great view of China in the long term. I don't know how each and every quarter goes and each and every week. But over the long haul, I have a very positive viewpoint."
