Foxconn recalls Chinese staff from India, hitting Apple’s local mfg push

New Delhi: Foxconn Technology Group has recalled hundreds of Chinese engineers and technicians from its iPhone manufacturing facilities in India, potentially disrupting Apple Inc.’s efforts to scale up production in the country.

According to a Bloomberg report, most of the Chinese staff stationed at Foxconn’s iPhone plants in southern India were instructed to return home two months ago.

Since then, over 300 personnel have departed, with Taiwanese support teams now managing operations, sources familiar with the development said.

Foxconn’s factory in southern India handles a significant portion of India’s iPhone assembly.

Other major players in Apple’s India supply chain include Tata Group’s electronics arm, which recently acquired Wistron Corp. and oversees Pegatron Corp.’s operations in the country.

Neither Apple nor Foxconn have issued official comments on the matter.

However, earlier this year, Chinese authorities reportedly advised regulatory bodies to discourage the transfer of technology and export of manufacturing equipment to India and Southeast Asia—moves seen as an attempt to slow the shift of global supply chains away from China.