At a business event in Doha, U.S. President Donald Trump disclosed that he had advised Apple CEO Tim Cook to refrain from expanding the company’s manufacturing footprint in India—except if the expansion was strictly intended to serve Indian consumers. The statement, delivered on May 15, underscores Trump’s consistent push to bring American business investments back to domestic soil.
“I said to him, my friend, I am treating you very good. You are coming up with $500 billion, but now I hear you are building all over India. I don’t want you building in India. You can build in India, if you want to take care of India because India is one of the highest tariff nations in the world, so it is very hard to sell in India,” the US President said.
Apple, which has been steadily reducing its reliance on Chinese production, has significantly increased its iPhone assembly operations in India through partnerships with suppliers like Foxconn and Pegatron. This shift coincides with the Indian government’s efforts to bolster domestic manufacturing, supported by the Production Linked Incentive (PLI) initiative.
Trump’s Qatar visit also resulted in the announcement of a monumental $243.5 billion economic package. The deal includes a record-breaking order of widebody aircraft from Boeing by Qatar Airways and commitments to strengthen collaboration across energy, defense, and technological domains. Trump also held discussions with Reliance Industries chairman Mukesh Ambani and Qatar’s Emir Sheikh Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani, highlighting a surge in global business connectivity.
Additionally, Trump mentioned that India had proposed a trade arrangement eliminating tariffs on U.S. goods, though he did not provide specifics. The Indian government has yet to comment on the claim.
India was among the earliest nations to initiate trade talks with the U.S. following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s White House visit in February. Both countries aim to conclude the initial phase of a bilateral trade agreement by autumn. India’s commerce minister is scheduled to travel to the U.S. from May 17 to 20 to continue negotiations with Trump administration officials.