Tariffs, you may have heard, could have an effect on the prices of goods. And the Apple iPhone has become totemic in these discussions, as they are built outside the United States. Apple has airlifted 600 tons of iPhones to beat the enactment of tariffs — and keep prices where they are.
According to Reuters, Apple has been working on this for some time, with activity reaching boiling point in March.
“About six cargo jets with a capacity of 100 tons each have flown out since March, one of them this week just as new tariffs kicked in, the source and an Indian government official said. The packaged weight of an iPhone 14 and its charging cable come to about 350 grams (12.35 oz), Reuters measurements show, implying the total cargo of 600 tons comprised about 1.5 million iPhones, after accounting for some packaging weight,” the report estimated.
That’s a lot of iPhones.
About a fifth of iPhones are now built in India, it’s estimated, with the rest from China, where tariffs are at their highest, 145%.
Apple’s strategy is rumored to have been eight months in the making, “Apple stepped up air shipments to meet its goal of a 20% increase in usual production at iPhone plants,”, Reuters claims. This was possible “by adding workers, and temporarily extending operations at the biggest Foxconn India factory to Sundays, the source added,” it said.
These eight months included expedited customs clearance in Chennai, it seems. The plans included lobbying airport authorities to cut the time needed to clear customs from 30 hours down to six hours, because Apple ” ‘wanted to beat the tariff,” said one of the sources familiar with the planning,” Reuters says.
The system seemed to have worked, with six cargo jets, each with a capacity of 100 tons, leaving India since March, one of them this week just as new tariffs kicked in, it’s claimed.
All of which means that Apple may be able to hold any price increases for the iPhone back for a little longer.
