14 DAY TRIAL // Foxconn and Pegatron, Apple’s biggest partners that make the iPhone, could set up new production facilities in Mexico as an alternative to Chinese operations.
According to a report from El Economista, Foxconn is already in an advanced planning stage regarding its manufacturing business in Mexico. The company already has a total of five different factories in the country, but these are responsible for the production of TVs and servers.
So the addition of the new facility would be specifically aimed at the iPhone. Interestingly enough, however, Apple isn’t involved in this new plan, and the decision entirely begins to Foxconn.
At the same time, Pegatron is also reportedly considering a similar move, again with the purpose of switching Chinese operations closer to the United States.
Apple’s trouble in China
Apple itself is trying to reduce reliance on Chinese manufacturing, especially after the trade war between the United States and China.
The Cupertino-based tech giant has long been considered a potential target for the Beijing government should the officials seek retaliation against an American company for the sanctions that Huawei has to deal with the U.S., so Apple has been on thin ice in the country in the last 12 months.
More recently, Apple was described as a potential target for China in the scandal involving TikTok, the Internet phenomenon that President Trump wants to ban in the country. Trump warned on several occasions that unless TikTok ends up being owned by an American company, the service would just be banned in the United States entirely.
China didn’t react well to these threats, explaining that it won’t just sit and watch a Chinese service being harassed in such an aggressive manner, and some considered this position as a sign of possible retaliation against American companies, including Apple.