[News] iPhone Manufacturing Dominance: One Leader, Two Contenders, One Challenger

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The battle for Apple’s iPhone manufacturing orders has entered a new phase this year. According to a report from Economic Daily News, while Foxconn still appears poised to dominate, with expectations to assemble over half of the iPhone 16 series, maintaining its lead; Luxshare, a key supplier in the supply chain, has swiftly risen to challenge, surpassing Pegatron to become the second-largest iPhone manufacturer.

With Luxshare’s share continuing to rise this year and the emergence of India’s Tata Group as a new contender, it is expected that the competition for iPhone manufacturing orders this year will be characterized by one leader, two strong contenders, and one new challenger.

In 2023, Apple launched the iPhone 15 series, with over 60% of the assembly orders handled by Foxconn, while Luxshare’s order share continued to rise, surpassing Pegatron last year to become the second-largest iPhone assembler. With Pegatron transferring the lead of its Kunshan factory in China to Luxshare at the end of last year, Luxshare’s order share is expected to continue increasing.

To retain its crucial Chinese market and further reduce costs, per a report from Economic Daily News, Apple has allowed Luxshare to continuously increase its share of Apple orders in recent years. Luxshare’s assembly products is anticipated to cover iPhone, Apple Watch, and the recently launched Vision Pro—a headset exclusively manufactured by Luxshare. Luxshare has then become a prominent supplier within the Apple supply chain in China.

The report further indicated that this year’s iPhone 16 series orders are expected to be predominantly secured by Foxconn Group, accounting for over 50% of the share. Luxshare ranks second, while Pegatron’s share is expected to decrease to third place. The proportion of Tata Group’s new device orders remains to be seen.

As Luxshare continues to expand its presence in the iPhone assembly domain, Tata Group, after taking over Wistron’s iPhone assembly plant in India, continues to improve overall production efficiency. By leveraging the advantages of being a local manufacturer in India, Luxshare’s presence in the iPhone assembly supply chain is expected to continue to rise in the future.

The report also mentioned that Tata Group is in negotiations with Pegatron to jointly establish an iPhone assembly plant in Hosur city, Tamil Nadu, in southern India. This would be marked as Tata Group’s first venture into this business through a joint venture.

Reportedly, it is suggested that Tata will hold the majority stake in the joint venture, while Pegatron will provide technical and engineering support for the Hosur city plant to help accelerate the construction process. Pegatron declined to comment on this matter.

In the past, Wistron Group’s factory in Karnataka, India, primarily produced older models of the iPhone. This factory has been sold to Tata Group. Market observers note that if the joint venture between Pegatron and Tata Group in Hosur city materializes, it will help Tata Group to expedite its entry into the production of new iPhone models.

Read more

• [News] Tata Group Plans to Build New iPhone Assembly Plant in India, Aligning with Apple’s Localization Strategy for the Supply Chain
• [News] Luxshare Acquires Leadership of Pegatron’s Kunshan Plant, Challenging Foxconn’s Dominance on iPhone Assembly?

(Photo credit: Apple)