Enlarge image
Apple boss Tim Cook with luxury class iPhone
Photo: APPLE INC.
HANDOUT / EPO
Apple plans to hire Chinese contract manufacturer Luxshare to manufacture premium iPhone models.
The Financial Times reports, citing insiders.
The company has already produced small batches of the iPhone 14 Pro Max at its Kunshan plant to compensate for production losses at Foxconn's Zhengzhou plant last year, it said.
Foxconn is the world's largest manufacturer of Apple iPhones.
The plant in the central Chinese industrial metropolis of Zhengzhou had been sealed off from the outside world due to the increasing number of corona infections.
This led to unrest and protests by workers, and production was limited.
The disruption created a shortage of iPhones and threatens to halt Apple's sales growth.
Analysts have long expected Apple to diversify its production.
But even for experienced assemblers it is difficult to make the latest models.
Luxshare was also able to do this because of Apple investments, writes the »FT«.
Apple and Luxshare have not responded immediately to inquiries.
Foxconn declined to comment but recently said the Zhengzhou factory has ramped up production to meet 90 percent of its original December targets.
Founded by former Foxconn employee Grace Wang, Luxshare has been expanding its presence in Apple's supply chain for years.
The company's annual revenue has grown from less than $2 billion in 2016 to $24 billion in 2021.
ssu/Reuters
