Apple adds suppliers in China despite efforts to spread out production, underscoring country’s major supply chain role
- A total of 157 contractors manufactured for Apple in mainland China in the past financial year, up from 151 previously
- Tata Electronics, an arm of India’s salt-to-steel conglomerate Tata Group, debuted on Apple’s latest supplier list
Apple added eight Chinese suppliers and removed four contractors on the mainland during its past financial year ended September, the first time since 2021 that the US tech giant introduced more suppliers from the country than it cut, according to its newly published supplier list.
Despite Apple’s recent efforts to diversify its supply chain and shift more production elsewhere in Asia amid geopolitical risks, mainland China remains the firm’s main manufacturing base, home to over a third of the factories run by its 187 disclosed suppliers, according to a Post analysis.
A total of 157 contractors conducted manufacturing in mainland China, up from 151 the previous year. The list represents 98 per cent of Apple’s direct spending on materials, manufacturing and assembly of its products worldwide. Data on each supplier’s production value and capacity was not disclosed.
Apple’s newly added mainland suppliers include Baoji Titanium Industry, an alloy manufacturer based in western Shaanxi province that counts aircraft makers like Boeing and Airbus as clients and also serves the shipbuilding sector.
Another addition was San’an Optoelectronics, a display technology company based in Xiamen city in southeastern Fujian province. It is believed to be supplying mini-LED chips for Apple’s iPad Pro and MacBook Pro, according to Chinese media.