Huawei Plans To Manufacture Mobile Phones In India
Many smartphone manufacturers like Xiaomi, Vivo, Oppo and OnePlus have already set up their manufacturing processes in India. Manufacturers are increasingly preferring India as a manufacturing hub over China because of the advantages in terms of labour and government’s favourability. Huawei, the $150 billion Chinese giant, has said to a news website that they intend to begin manufacturing phones in India as early as next year. They have already set up plans to open 1000 storefronts all across the country to gauge the market.
Huawei’s Make In India
The company’s VP has informed that they look at India strategically. They now intend to grow their presence through the launch of devices in the mid and premium end of the market. Manufacturing in India reduces the price of the smartphones for the Indian market drastically. Currently there is a 20% import duty levied on smartphones that will be negated once they are manufactured locally. This is specially important for a price sensitive market. In 2017, Huawei accounted 153 million in global smartphone sales. The company also stated that they plan to manufacture the phones with their partner Flex who has a factory in Chennai. This in turn will generate new jobs and will help India as well in the long run.
Also Read: Huawei Crosses Apple, Becomes Number 2 Smartphone Maker Worldwide
The company representative has also said that apart from China, they have seen a significant growth across many different markets including Europe. Xiaomi is currently the largest phone manufacturer in India. They buy their devices from Foxconn’s India unit. India is one of the most lucrative smartphone markets and has immense potential for growth. Huawei however is the largest phone manufacturer in China, which is the world’s biggest smartphone market. The company has also stated that they plan to import other products such as smartwatches and laptops for now. They have also indicated that they may manufacture these locally as well, once they start gaining popularity.
