14 DAY TRIAL // Microsoft has officially denied that it’s considering moving production of hardware from China to other other countries.
A report that made the rounds earlier this month indicated that the software giant was looking into alternatives to its Chinese manufacturing plans as a result of the trade war between the United States and the Beijing government.
The trade tension, which has reportedly made several other Microsoft partners reconsider long-term manufacturing plans in China, could generate price increases for a series of products.
Microsoft currently makes Xbox components in China, and a Nikkei report indicated that the firm wanted to transfer production elsewhere to maintain operations untouched regardless of the trade talks between the two governments.
Microsoft denies the report
But Microsoft says this is not the case. In a statement for CNET, a Microsoft spokesperson denies such plans, explaining that the company has no intention to leave China.
“The reporting from Nikkei Asia Review on Wednesday was inaccurate and does not reflect Microsoft's manufacturing plans in China in any way,” a Microsoft spokesperson was quoted as saying.
In addition to Microsoft, Lenovo was also said to be looking into alternative production facilities in several non-Chinese locations, but the company said last week that it has no intention to leave the country. HP shared a similar message, explaining that it’s still keeping an eye on the trade talks and only then consider any change of plans.
“[We are]actively monitoring the situation and will continue to work with government officials to advocate for the best interests of customers, partners and consumers,” HP said last week as per the same source.
According to the original report, HP and Dell wanted to transfer approximately 30 percent of the production power from China to a different country. Amazon, Acer, and ASUS were said to be planning a similar migration too.