SAN FRANCISCO (Diya TV) — Foxconn, the most important manufacturing partner of tech giant Apple Computer, became the latest in several supply chain companies to begin exploring the possibility of relocating iPhone production facilities from Asia to the U.S., according to a report in Japanese newspaper The Nikkei.
The report comes on the heels of the stunning results of America’s presidential election last week, and promises Donald Trump bragging rights on the same token — the Republican President-elect unloaded on Apple multiple times during his campaign, chastising the company for its overseas manufacturing.
“We’re going to get Apple to build their damn computers and things in this country instead of in other countries,” Trump said on one stop of his campaign.
The Nikkei claims that Foxconn “has been studying the possibility” of opening manufacturing facilities on U.S. soil. Pegatron, another key producer of Apple components, is said to have rejected the suggestion on account of the increased costs associated. Apple already has invested in some hardware production to the U.S. with a facility in Texas.
Apple asked these partners to begin exploring these possibilities as early as June, according to the report. This would have placed the conversations squarely in the middle of the presidential campaign period, when many of these issues about foreign production and tariffs were swirling.
The President-elect’s stance on trade has already drawn criticism from China, where a state-owned paper editorialized that iPhone sales in the country could get negatively impacted in retaliation.
Together, Foxconn and Pegatron produce more than 200 million iPhones per year to satisfy demand for the iconic Apple smartphones worldwide.
