Import duty hike increases iPhone prices in India

by Vandita Jadeja 2017-12-28 14:56:09

After the government raised import duty on mobile phones, Apple has hiked the price of its iPhones excluding iPhone SE

The prices of iPhones in India have been marginally increased by Apple in view of the government hiking the duty on imported cellphones. The cost of iPhone SE has remained unchanged because it was being assembled in India since June. The overall rise in prices comes up to roughly 3.5%.

The latest entrant iPhone X (64 GB) is available for Rs.92, 430 as compared to the earlier price of Rs.89, 000. The 128 GB top end model is priced at Rs.1, 05,720 which is up from Rs.1, 02,000. The rise in price has affected the two year old iPhone 6 32GB model which is now available for Rs.30, 780. Further, the iPhone 6S 128 GB model costs Rs.50, 660 which is up from Rs.49, 000.

Here is the complete list:

Courtesy: Hindustan Times

The government has raised the import tax from 10% to 15% on all imported handsets in order to promote the ‘Make in India’ initiative. Apple imports an estimated 88% of its smartphones to the country and is believed to be one of the top brands affected by this decision.

Apple has been eyeing India for its next round of growth since the western and Chinese markets are slowing down. Apple has registered a double digit growth in India during the fourth quarter of the year. CEO Tim Cook said that the revenue from emerging markets outside of greater China was up by 40% with great momentum in India, where the revenue doubled year over year. The company touched $2 billion sales in India although it was hit by the demonetization drive. Apple recorded sales of Rs.11, 619 crore which is $1.8 billion for the financial year ended March 2017. The same stood at Rs.9, 937 crore in 2016 which translates to 17% growth in a country.

The older generation iPhones like 4S and 5S had sold well for the company. Consumers accustomed to seeing Apple models at a minimum price of $400, the older generation iPhones proved highly appealing. As a result, it brought down the overall ASPs for Apple and thus the slowdown in the pace of growth.