New Delhi. Bharat has become the 3rd largest exporter of smartphones in the world, which was on the 23rd rank in 2019. The country’s smartphone exports have also breached the 20 thousand crore rupees mark in a single month, in November 2024, according to data submitted by companies and figures compiled from industry associations.
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Sharing a news article on a social media platform, Union Minister of Electronics and Information Technology Ashwini Vaishnaw lauded this achievement and termed it a ‘Making Bharat Story’.
According to industry associations’ data, the country’s smartphone exports were recorded at 20 thousand 395 crore rupees last month, representing a staggering 92 percent increase over the same month last year, when the figure was 10 thousand 634 crore rupees. This achievement outshines the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme commitment to export 70-75 per cent of production value in the financial year 2024-25.
Apple and Samsung led the surge, with Apple spearheading the charge. The Cupertino-based tech giant exported iPhones worth Rs 14,000 crore in November, its highest-ever monthly export value, surpassing the previous record of Rs 12,000 crore in October.
Apple exported over 80 per cent of the total production value of iPhones assembled in Bharat by its three vendors, significantly exceeding its production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme commitment of 70-75 per cent for FY25.
Foxconn’s iPhone factory in Tamil Nadu emerged as the largest contributor to smartphone exports, followed by Tata Electronics in Karnataka and Pegatron.
The PLI scheme, which has been pivotal in boosting smartphone exports, has transformed the industry, elevating smartphones from India’s 23rd-ranked export in 2019 to the third-largest individual commodity export today.
The India Cellular & Electronics Association (ICEA), in a recent assessment of the PLI scheme, highlighted its impact. “Against a total PLI disbursement of Rs 5,800 crore between 2021 and 2024, the industry contributed Rs 1.1 trillion in incremental goods and services tax and duties on mobile components,” the ICEA stated in a letter to the finance ministry and the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology.
The scheme has also spurred job creation, generating 3 lakh direct and 6 lakh indirect jobs, with many positions filled by young women entering the workforce for the first time. Over the four-year PLI period, smartphone exports have added Rs 2.87 trillion to Bharat’s export tally.
