Apple to give more focus on India as sales surge: report

New Delhi: iPhone maker Apple is set to focus more on India to expand its sales amid reports that the California based company will relocate its operations to India from China.

Taking note of India’s growing importance in terms of sales, Apple will give the country increased prominence inside the tech giant, as per a report by Bloomberg.

Besides, India is becoming an important region in the company’s product development, which is all the more evident with Apple’s suppliers are setting up offices in India.

A report by Bloomberg earlier said Apple’s manufacturing partner Foxconn is setting up iPhone production factories in India.

Apple’s change of focus come after the retirement of Hugues Asseman who is Apple’s vice president in charge of India, the Middle East, the Mediterranean, East Europe and Africa.

Although Apple saw its total sales going down 5 per cent last quarter, the company made a record revenue in India in the same period.

Apple is set open its retail outlets in India later this year as it has opened online store for the region.

Comparing Apples’ early years in China to the state of affairs in India, Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook reportedly said the company is giving great emphasis on the market.

"We are, in essence, taking what we learned in China years ago and how we scale to China and bringing that to bear," he reportedly said.

China now contributes nearly $75 billion a year to Apple being its biggest market after Americas and Europe.

Indicating India’s growing importance, Apple includes India as part of its Europe category along with the Middle East and Africa.