Apple (NASDAQ:AAPL) plans to think about the viability of making some of its devices in Indonesia, amid efforts to reduce reliance on China, Bloomberg News reported.
Replying to a request by Indonesia’s President Joko Widodo, Apple’s CEO Tim Cook said the company would look into the feasibility of local manufacturing, the report added.
The Apple chief is on a visit to some South Asian nations and the latest talks come a day after Cook visited Vietnam, noting that the company aims to boost its investment in the country and increase cooperation.
“We talked about the president’s desire to see manufacturing in the country, and it’s something that we will look at,” said Cook to reporters in Jakarta after a meeting with Widodo.
The Cupertino, Calif.-based company — which, reportedly, is making nearly 14% or about 1 in 7 of its iPhones in India — is advancing efforts to reduce its dependence on China amid rising geopolitical tensions. Apple has spent about $16B in Vietnam since 2019 via supply chain partners, according to a separate report.
The tech giant opened an Apple Developer Academy in Bali during Cook’s visit — its fourth in Indonesia — as part of its effort to meet the needs for domestically manufactured parts and software in smartphones and other devices. The company has invested 1.6T rupiah (about $98.5M) in total on the four academies, according to Information and Communication Technology Minister Budi Arie Setiadi, who also attended the meeting, the report added.