India may offer subsidised loans to attract Apple, Samsung suppliers

The government is considering offering subsidised loans to mobile handset manufacturers to attract Apple and Samsung suppliers to open factories in the country, an official said, adding this may be announced during the Union Budget.

The Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology (MeitY) is considering offering subsidized loans to mobile manufacturers to attract suppliers to Apple and Samsung to start operations in India, reported.

The report also quoted an official saying that giving interest subsidies on local borrowing by such handset manufacturers is likely to be a part of the upcoming Budget, set to be tabled on February 1. Industrial zones with tax and customs clearance, along with infrastructural facilities like roads, railways and water supply, could also be a part of the larger plan.

Currently, Apple’s iPhone XR is being assembled by its supplier Foxconn in Sriperumbudur in Tamil Nadu. Even the South Korean tech giant Samsung has set up its largest manufacturing facility in Noida, thus setting up shop in India.

Experts say that phone shipment is expected to see high single-digit to double-digit growth in India as smartphones aiding everything from shopping to banking to social media.

Counterpoint Research Associate Director Tarun Pathak expects India’s smartphone market to grow by 9 percent this year, and in double digits (by 12-14 percent) in 2020.

The Bloomberg report quoted figures that showed that the Indian electronics manufacturing export segment achieved record numbers year after year since 2014.