Best printers for Home

Best Mixer Grinder

Best wired Earphones

Best 43 Inch TV in India

Best Wi Fi Routers

Best Home Theatre in India

Smart Watch under 5000

Best Laptops for Education

Best Laptop for Students

<ul class="summary-list"><li><keyword id="6354427" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="60" keywordseo="apple">Apple</keyword> on Saturday reportedly put <keyword id="1930805" type="PERSON" weightage="60" keywordseo="Wistron">Wistron</keyword> Corp, a <keyword id="6362048" type="UNKNOWN" weightage="60" keywordseo="manufacturing">manufacturing</keyword> partner, on probation after workers at a plant in <keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="60" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> caused rioted over reduced or unpaid salary. </li><li>Apple and Wistron both acknowledged lapses in payment in October and November, according to <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/apple-wistron-admit-to-lapses-in-payments-to-workers-in-karnataka-facility/articleshow/79812917.cms">The Times of India</a>.</li><li>"We have place Wistron on probation and they will not receive any new business from Apple before they complete corrective actions," Apple said in a statement, according to multiple local news reports. </li></ul>Apple on Saturday reportedly said it would temporarily stop giving new business to Wistron Corp., putting its partner on probation after rioting workers at a plant in India caused about $7.1 million in damage.The riots were over reduced or unpaid salaries. "We have placed Wistron on probation and they will not receive any new business from Apple before they complete corrective actions," Apple said in a statement, according to multiple local news reports. Last weekend, about 2,000 workers coming off a night shift <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/workers-riot-over-pay-factory-making-apple-iphones-in-india-2020-12">destroyed the lobby and other parts</a> of Wistron's <keyword id="6354606" type="COMPANY" weightage="60" keywordseo="iPhone">iPhone</keyword> facilities in Narasapura, India. Apple and Wistron both acknowledged lapses in payment in October and November, according to <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/business/india-business/apple-wistron-admit-to-lapses-in-payments-to-workers-in-karnataka-facility/articleshow/79812917.cms">The Times of India</a>. "While these investigations are ongoing, our preliminary findings indicate violations of our Supplier Code of Conduct by failing to implement proper working hour management processes. This led to payment delays for some workers in October and November," an Apple statement said, according to <a href="https://www.newindianexpress.com/business/2020/dec/19/apple-puts-wistron-on-probation-afterpayment-delays-to-workers-in-karnataka-facility-2238464.html">The New Indian Express</a>.Wistron said it would remove its vice president in charge of India manufacturing, according to The Times of India.<div type="image" title="Wistron Apple India Closed Down.JPG" height="3732" width="5376" msid="79815343" hostid="261"></div>Wistron and Apple didn't immediately respond to requests for comment. Last Saturday, images of workers smashing windows, spraying fire extinguishers, and flipping cars spread online.The dispute in Narasapura, a suburb of Bengaluru, started as overnight workers left the Wistron factory early Saturday morning, according to <a href="https://timesofindia.indiatimes.com/city/bengaluru/violence-breaks-out-at-wistron-corps-iphone-manufacturing-plant-near-bengaluru/articleshow/79691511.cms">The Times of India</a>. Workers who had recently had their wages reduced - some by about a quarter - started discussing it on the factory floor overnight, the newspaper said.Some reportedly only received tiny fractions of the pay that had been promised. By morning, the discussion had turned violent."They breached the four main entrance gates, ransacked offices, smashed lockers and desks, and destroyed documents containing details of employees," a police official told <a href="https://www.thehindu.com/news/national/karnataka/iphone-factory-violence-wistron-estimates-43770-crore-in-damage/article33321871.ece">The Hindu</a> on Sunday. About 128 people were arrested, while another 300 were detained for questioning, the official said. <div type="image" title="Tim Cook Apple Congress Hearing.JPG" height="720" width="1280" msid="79815347" hostid="261"></div>After last weekend's riots, Apple sent a team into Narasapura. "We have teams on the ground and have immediately launched a detailed investigation at Wistron's Narasapura facility," Apple said in an email to <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Business/Technology/Apple-probes-Wistron-iPhone-plant-in-India-after-violence">Nikkei Asia</a> on Monday. On Tuesday, Wistron said damage at the facility totalled about $7.1 million, according to <a href="https://www.reuters.com/article/us-apple-india-wistron/apple-supplier-wistron-puts-india-plant-damage-at-up-to-7-million-idUSKBN28P054">Reuters</a>. Company and independent auditors have been "working around the clock" to investigate issues at the plant, the Times of India <a href="https://twitter.com/TOIBengaluru/status/1340230435645747205?s=20">reported</a> on Saturday. The Indian prime minister, Narendra Modi, was reportedly "very worried" about the ransacked factory. "We have taken action. It is a very important foreign company and this should not have happened. The PM is also very much worried about this development," BS Yediyurappa, chief minister of Karnataka, told India's <a href="https://www.businesstoday.in/current/corporate/pm-modi-very-worried-about-violence-at-wistron-factory-yediyurappa/story/425205.html">Business Today</a>. Wistron is just one of several foreign manufacturing companies that have chosen to open factories in the suburbs outside Bengaluru. Local politicians, including Yediyarappa, have pushed for it to become a global manufacturing hub. As Wistron scaled its operations in India this year, its HR practices failed to keep pace. "Though 10,500 workers are employed in the factory the HR department has not been adequately set up with personnel of sound knowledge of labour laws," said a government report, according to Reuters.

Apple puts iPhone partner Wistron on probation after rioting workers caused $7 million worth of damage at Indian plant

AP Photo/Kin CheungApple's iPhone sales in China have taken a major hit.<ul class="summary-list"><li>Apple's manufacturing partners are looking to diversify their production to locations outside of China, such as India, Vietnam, and Indonesia.</li><li>The trade war and the coronavirus pandemic sparked concern about the company relying on one country for the majority of its production.</li><li>However, the ease and efficiency of basing manufacturing in China will be difficult for companies to ignore.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/?hprecirc-bullet">Visit Business Insider's homepage for more stories</a>.</li></ul>Apple's supply chains could be rewoven as key manufacturers for the company consider relocating and diversifying centers of production outside China as the coronavirus rattles supply chains, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-27/iphone-makers-look-beyond-china-in-supply-chain-rethink?utm_source=twitter&amp;utm_content=business&amp;cmpid=socialflow-twitter-business&amp;utm_medium=social&amp;utm_campaign=socialflow-organic">according to a report by Bloomberg</a>.Wistron Corp. could transition half of its production capacity into countries beyond China in the next year, the report said. Other Apple partners such as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. (also known as Foxconn), Inventec Corp., and <a href="https://bi.slack.com/archives/DT7TE0KRC/p1585319234003200"></a>Pegatron Corp., are also considering reorganizing their supply chains.The potential to reorient manufacturing locations was ushered in as the trade war between China and the US erupted and is becoming an increasingly serious consideration as the coronavirus ravages supply chains and the global economy, according to Bloomberg. Both the plight of the trade war and the coronavirus epidemic reveal the risks of relying on one country to manufacture a product.Wistron Corp. already produces some iPhone technology in India as well as Vietnam and Mexico and is saving $1 billion to continue spreading its manufacturing efforts elsewhere, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2020-03-27/iphone-makers-look-beyond-china-in-supply-chain-rethink">the report said</a>. Producers such as Pegatron are also looking to expand into Vietnam and India: Pegatron is already branching out to Indonesia and hopes to expand in Taiwan as well.The same goes for smaller manufacturers with partnerships outside of Apple, such as Meiloon Industrial Co., a speaker producer for Harman International Industries and Xiaomi Corp."We're talking about adjusting some knobs, not some sort of wholesale, fundamental change," Apple CEO Tim Cook said in late February the company wasn't making any sudden changes because of the coronavirus shake-up, according to Bloomberg. Moving production outside of China is not a simple process for companies because of the ease China offers, including a large market base, skilled workers, productive distribution systems, and a closely-knit network of suppliers. But for some companies, the inconvenience of diversifying manufacturing is worth avoiding the risk of putting production in one country.<a href="https://store.businessinsider.com/collections/pro/products/payments-commerce-briefing-subscription?IR=T&amp;itm_source=businessinsider&amp;itm_medium=ctgr_bii&amp;itm_term=ctgr_subscription&amp;itm_content=iphone&amp;itm_campaign=payments-commerce-briefing-subscription-2"></a> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/bidets-better-than-using-just-toilet-paper-2019-9">Why bidets are better than buying countless rolls of toilet paper</a></h3>

Coronavirus is pushing Apple's iPhone makers to find new manufacturing frontiers outside of China

<ul><li><keyword id="1930805" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Wistron">Wistron</keyword>, one of <keyword id="6354427" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="apple">Apple</keyword>’s manufacturers for the iPhone in India, is facing trouble with the Indian government over the non-payment and delay in payment of wages. </li><li>According to lawyers, allegations against the company are in violation of three Indian labour laws — the <keyword id="695544" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Payment-of-Wages-Act">Payment of Wages Act</keyword> (PWA) of 1936, the Factories Act (FA) of 1948 and the Contract Labour, <keyword id="3938435" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Regulation-and-Abolition-Act">Regulation and Abolition Act</keyword> (CLRA) of 1970.</li><li>Wistron blames the issue of the payment of salaries to a software ‘glitch’ on its system, which could cushion the blow.</li></ul>Supplier of Apple iPhones in India, Wistron, claims a software ‘glitch’ is the reason why its contract employees’ salaries were being unfairly deducted and payments were four days late. A dispute that led to a violent reaction from the workers at the Narasapur (Karnataka) factory who threw stones, damaged some vehicles and looted some of the iPhones kept for export, according to the FIR filed by Wistron against 7,000 people. <div type="image" title="wistron factory damage1_edited" msid="79790340" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Damage to Wistron&amp;#39;s factory in Karnataka after employee protests turned violent&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> While that argument may help Wistron cushion the blow, lawyers believe that the current allegations against the company are in violation of three Indian labour laws — the Payment of Wages Act (PWA) of 1936, the Factories Act (FA) of 1948 and the Contract Labour, Regulation and Abolition Act (CLRA) of 1970. The company, which also manufactures IT products for Microsoft and Lenovo, is currently being investigated by Apple, the Karnataka government’s Department of Factories, Boilers, Industrial Safety &amp; Health and the Karnataka Police. “Software glitch can be a reason but that is not of any consequence under the law. That is for Wistron to take care and deal with its software provider,” Neeraj Dubey, a corporate law partner at Singh &amp; Associates told Business Insider. Minimum wage and timely payment of wages The state’s labour department preliminary enquiry has deduced that the hiring agencies were not at fault. It was Wistron’s management, which deducted two to four days’ of salary over the past couple of months due to a software ‘glitch’. <div type="image" title="wistron factory damage 2_edited" msid="79791172" hostid="261" caption="&amp;lt;p&amp;gt;Overturned and burned vehicles left in the wreckage of the violence at Wistron&amp;#39;s factory in Karnataka&amp;lt;/p&amp;gt;"></div> The workers <a href="https://www.thenewsminute.com/article/wistron-iphone-plant-violence-workers-say-months-pent-anger-behind-outburst-139681">said</a> that they were angry because they weren’t paid for the additional hours they worked for many months. Things boiled over after the November wages were delayed by four days. “The law mandates salaries to be disbursed by the 7th of every month. Wistron paid contractors on December 10 and those agencies paid workers the next day. The company has said that the delay was because they were trying to fix the technical snag that had led to the deduction of salaries in the previous months,” the labour commissioner told the press. Under the Payment of Wages Act (PWA) of 1936, not paying wages on time is a punishable offence within stipulates a fine at least ₹1,500 for every violation, but could extend to up to ₹7,000 for first offenders. “Although the agency or the contractor is responsible for payment of wages - if they fail to pay the workers, the liability under the Contract Labour Regulation Act is that of the principal employer’s i.e. Wistron in the present scenario,” Avik Biswas, a partner at IndusLaw, told Business Insider. Dubey adds that there is also scope for an additional fine of ₹10,000 for non-maintenance of proper records pressed against Wistron. Laws to specifically protect contract workers Wistron had hired 9,800 employees through six contractors — Creative Engineers, Quess Corp, Innovsource, Adecco Group, Needs Manpower Support Services and Randstad. While 1,343 were permanent employees, the <a href="https://theprint.in/india/missing-contractors-key-to-solving-mystery-of-wistron-iphone-plant-attack-police-begin-hunt/569016/">other 8,490 were hired on a contract basis</a>. The latter are protected by the Contract Labour - Regulation and Abolition Act (CLRA) of 1970. Under this law, if the investigators find Wistron’s management guilty of non-payment of wages, they could end up in jail for up to three months, be fined up to ₹1,000, or both. Location, location, location Biswa adds that since this incident took place at a factory, the Factories Act (FA) of 1948 will also apply. This dictates that if any worker — including those working on contract — works on the premises for more than nine hours in a day, they’re entitled to overtime wages. These overtime wages have to be at least double the ordinary rate of wages. A preliminary report submitted by the Department of Factories Boilers and Industrial Safety dated 13 December, found that Wistron had increased overtime work hours for employees without informing the Labour Department. It added the difference in pay was not credited along with the salary for the month of November 2020. “The salary of the housekeeping contract workers are not paid till date, and are required to work for 12 hours a day for six days a week, and are being paid the same salary which they were being paid when they were working for 8 hours a day,” said the report. If the allegations hold true, the penalty for not paying or overtime would leave both the occupier and manager of the factory includes imprisonment of up to two years, a fine not exceeding ₹1 lakh or both. “If the contravention is continued after conviction, with a further fine which may extend to ₹1,000 for each day on which the contravention is so continued” explained Biswas. How much protection does the ‘glitch’ offer? According to the law, the company is accountable to be prosecuted. “The reason for non-payment of actual dues is immaterial as making the payment is of paramount significance under the laws,” said Dubey. However, if Wistron can prove that the offence was committed without the knowledge of its employees and Wistron could have done nothing about the software glitch, then Wistron may not be accountable under CLRA. “Similarly, under PWA, there may be no penalty if Wistron can satisfy the law only broken due to a bona fide error — like a software glitch — as to the amount payable to the employed person,” explained Biswas. And, finally, under FA, if the management at Wistron can prove to the satisfaction of the court that they followed due diligence to enforce the law and that the non-payment of wages occurred due to a specific person committing the offence on their own, then the liability of the Company can be significantly limited. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/science/news/fda-says-it-will-rapidly-work-toward-authorizing-modernas-covid-19-vaccine/articleshow/79789544.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">FDA says it will 'rapidly work toward' authorizing Moderna's COVID-19 vaccine</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/facebook-and-google-have-been-accused-of-striking-a-secret-illegal-advertising-deal/articleshow/79778780.cms" data-type="tilCustomLink">Facebook and Google have been accused of striking a secret, illegal advertising deal</a>

If investigators find Wistron management guilty, here's what is at stake for the company

<keyword id="74266" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="apple-inc">Apple Inc</keyword>.’s primary iPhone assembler in India is scouting for about 100 acres of land in Bangalore to expand its facilities according to reports. <keyword id="4019708" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="wistron-corp">Wistron Corp</keyword>. executives toured the city last week and have reportedly shortlisted a few parcels including one plot close to the airport. The Taiwanese manufacturer, which began making the iPhone SE in India this year, may use the facilities to supply other brands too. <keyword id="6354427" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="apple">Apple</keyword> has been a minor player in India, the world’s fastest growing smartphone market, largely because its phones are more expensive than those of rivals such as <keyword id="123226" type="ORGANIZATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="samsung-electronics-co">Samsung Electronics Co</keyword>. and Xiaomi Corp. Apple Chief Executive Officer <keyword id="191843" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="tim-cook">Tim Cook</keyword> made his first trip to the country last year, meeting Prime Minister <keyword id="6354477" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="narendra-modi">Narendra Modi</keyword> and expressing hopes for an expanded presence. On Apple’s earnings call last week, Cook said the company has “ great momentum in India, where revenue doubled year over year.” He said he’s confident the company can gain ground, but it will take work on many fronts. “It’s building stores. It’s building channels. It’s building markets. It’s building the developer ecosystem,” he said. “It’s having the right product lineup for the market. And I feel like we’re making good progress there and are gaining understanding of the market, but we still have a long way to go.” Apple’s devices are particularly expensive in India because the government levies tariffs on devices manufactured outside the country. That comes on top of prices that start at $999 for the new iPhone X. Its manufacturing in India has been limited to small volumes of the SE, a lower-end smartphone. Apple has been locked in negotiations with the federal government for about a year over expanding manufacturing facilities and opening its own retail stores. The two sides have been meeting regularly to consider the Cupertino-based phonemaker’s demands, which include exemption from duties on capital equipment, removal of customs duty barriers and the ability to import used iPhones to refurbish and export.

Apple supplier might be planning India expansion as iPhone demand rises

Reuters/Issei KatoMongolian-born Tomozuna Oyakata, or master of the Tomozuna stable (L), attends his wrestlers' training session.Here is what you need to know.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/stock-market-news-today-tuesday-july-18-2017-7">Stocks are at record highs</a>. Both the Nasdaq and S&amp;P 500 rallied into record territory on Tuesday.<a href="http://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/snap-stock-price-hits-all-time-low-2017-7-1002183215">Snap is below $15</a>. Shares settled at $14.73 on Tuesday, making for the first close below the $15 mark. Snap is down 13.3% since its March 1 initial public offering.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/ibm-misses-on-q2-revenues-2017-7">IBM misses on revenue</a>. IBM saw revenues of $19.29 billion in the second quarter, missing the $19.47 billion that Wall Street was expecting. Cloud revenue rose 15% versus a year ago to $3.9 billion.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/united-continental-earnings-q2-2017-2017-7">United Continental beats, but rising labor costs weigh</a>. The airline beat on the top and bottom lines, but says its results were impacted by a more than 3% jump in operating costs.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/peter-rive-is-leaving-tesla-solarcity-lyndon-rive-2017-7">SolarCity's cofounder is leaving Tesla</a>. Peter Rive, cofounder of SolarCity and Elon Musk's cousin, is leaving Tesla just months after his company was acquired for $2 billion.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/apple-contractors-accuse-qualcomm-of-antitrust-violations-2017-7">4 Apple contractors are accusing Qualcomm of antitrust violations</a>. Hon Hai Precision Industry Co, Wistron Corp, Compal Electronics Inc and Pegatron Corp say that Qualcomm violated two sections of the Sherman Act, a US antitrust law, Reuters reports, citing a filing in US District Court for the Southern District of California.<a href="http://www.businessinsider.com/bp-is-thinking-about-an-ipo-for-its-us-pipeline-assets-2017-7?r=UK&amp;IR=T">BP is thinking about an IPO for its US pipeline assets</a>. The oil giant is thinking about creating a master-limited partnership (MLP) for some of its US pipeline assets in the US Gulf and Midwest, Reuters says, citing a company release. <a href="http://markets.businessinsider.com/indices">Stock markets around the world are higher</a>. China's Shanghai Composite (+1.36%) led in Asia and France's CAC (+0.2%) is out front in Europe. The S&amp;P 500 is set to open little changed at 2,462.<a href="http://markets.businessinsider.com/earnings-calendar#date=07/19/2017&amp;name=&amp;countries=&amp;eventtypes=99&amp;tab=L">Earnings reports flow</a>. Morgan Stanley reports ahead of the opening bell while American Express and Qualcomm release their quarterly reports after markets close.<a href="http://markets.businessinsider.com/economic-calendar#date=07/19/2017&amp;name=&amp;countries=us&amp;eventtypes=&amp;tab=1,2,3">US economic data is light</a>. Housing starts and building permits will be released at 8:30 a.m. ET. The US 10-year yield is up 1 basis point at 2.27%.

10 things you need to know before the opening bell

New Delhi, <keyword id="3658" type="COUNTRY" weightage="20" keywordseo="India">India</keyword> is now aiming to surpass <keyword id="1334" type="LOCATION" weightage="20" keywordseo="China">China</keyword> in the field of <keyword id="2645311" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Mobile-manufacturing">mobile manufacturing</keyword> with the production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme attracting global majors in this segment to the country, telecom and IT minister <keyword id="6354886" type="PERSON" weightage="20" keywordseo="Ravi-Shankar-Prasad">Ravi Shankar Prasad</keyword> said on Monday. He said that the government is looking to make India a hub of other electronic products as well with the expansion of the PLI scheme to other sectors. "We wanted India to become the second largest mobile manufacturer in the world. Now I am pushing India to surpass China. That's my goal and I am very clearly defining it," Prasad said at the annual general meeting of industry chamber FICCI. India became the second largest mobile manufacturing country in 2017. <keyword id="10428852" type="COMPANY" weightage="20" keywordseo="the-national-policy-on-electronics-2019">The National Policy on Electronics 2019</keyword> (NPE) envisages electronic manufacturing turnover of more than Rs 26 lakh crore by 2025, out of which Rs 13 lakh crore is expected to come from the mobile phone segment. PLI is designed to propel India's stature and ease of doing business under the leadership of the Prime Minister Narendra Modi to showcase India as an alternate manufacturing destination, Prasad said. "PLI is designed to enable global champion companies to come to India and make Indian companies national champion," he noted. The government has started a PLI scheme under which eligible companies can get sops of around Rs 48,000 crore. The government has cleared 16 proposals from domestic and international companies entailing investment of Rs 11,000 crore under the PLI scheme to manufacture mobile phones worth Rs 10.5 lakh crore over the next five years. The companies include iPhone maker Apple's contract manufacturers Foxconn Hon Hai, Wistron and Pegatron, apart from Samsung and Rising Star. Domestic companies whose proposals have been approved include Lava, Bhagwati (Micromax), Padget Electronics (Dixon Technologies), UTL Neolyncs and Optiemus. SEE ALSO: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/top-stocks-to-watch-future-retail-power-grid-cipla-delta-corp-yes-bank-adani-power-and-others/articleshow/79713824.cms">Top stocks to watch — Future Retail, Power Grid, Cipla, Delta Corp, Yes Bank, Adani Power and others</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/stock-market/news/burger-king-india-shares-nearly-doubles-on-listing-debut-pushes-valuation-past-4000-crore/articleshow/79715269.cms">Burger King India shares nearly doubles on listing — debut pushes valuation past ₹4,000 crore</a> <a href="https://www.businessinsider.in/tech/news/everything-about-cozy-bear-russian-hacking-group-behind-us-government-data-breach/articleshow/79715555.cms">Meet Cozy Bear — the Russian cyber espionage group allegedly behind US government data breach</a>

India wants to beat China at mobile manufacturing by expanding PLI schemes to more sectors

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table float_right"><div><div class="image on-image">Facebook</div></div></div>TAOYUAN, Taiwan (Reuters) - Taiwanese smartphone maker <keyword id="16129" type="CITY" weightage="60" keywordseo="HTC">HTC</keyword> Corp has halted at least one of its four main manufacturing lines, accounting for at least a fifth of total capacity, and is outsourcing production as a sales slump puts pressure on its cash flow, according to sources with direct knowledge of the situation.
A Reuters reporter who visited an HTC factory at the company's former headquarters in Taoyuan, about an hour's drive from Taipei, saw loading docks shuttered and a sign on a locked lobby door that read: "Lobby is temporarily closed for use. Thank you for your cooperation."
HTC launched its latest version of the flagship One series handsets this year but has struggled to gain traction in a market dominated by larger rivals Apple Inc and Samsung Electronics Co Ltd.
The company, whose woes have been exacerbated by supply chain constraints and internal turmoil, reported its first ever quarterly loss this month and its cash flow from operations dropped to a negative $707.27 million as of the end of June.
Despite lackluster sales, HTC devices usually receive rave reviews, and it has in recent months expanded its range to include smaller and larger models of the One phone and hinted at further products, including a tablet and a wearable device.
HTC initially denied it was shutting down any production, in Taiwan or elsewhere, and declined to comment on whether it was in discussions to outsource production.
"HTC in not shutting down nor has plans to sell any of its factory assets," the company said in an emailed response to queries from Reuters. "HTC has a very strong balance sheet and will provide the latest financials in our upcoming earnings call to investors and the broader community."
When asked about what Reuters had seen at the factory in a telephone interview, HTC Chief Marketing Officer Ben Ho declined to give details, but said: "Like any manufacturer, we do volume planning to optimize our lines, our manufacturing and production facilities.
"Whether we are operating those facilities depends on market demand and our own expectations. When you have less demand you work with less facilities to optimize your costs. When you have demand, or bigger growth, you definitely have to activate all these facilities."
Two of the four sources who spoke to Reuters said HTC had combined production from two lines at Taoyuan into one, which would reduce its potential capacity by about 1 million phones per month, out of a total capacity of around 2.5 million at the site and around 4.5 million including operations elsewhere.
Manufacturing has been halted since at least August on the line, housed in a facility called Building H, while production continued at a nearby plant known as TY5.
Most of the assembly lines in HTC's Shanghai factory, which can produce 2 million phones a month, were also out of production, one of the sources said, with only a small number of phones being produced for sale inside China.
HTC was considering selling the out-of-use production lines in China and Taiwan, two of the sources said.
"HTC's cash flow is not doing well. It has to do something soon to generate cash," said one of the sources with direct knowledge of the manufacturing sale plan.
<h3>PREMIUM BRAND</h3>
HTC Chief Executive Peter Chou, the driving force behind its award-winning handsets, has temporarily handed some of his duties to the company's chairwoman in order to focus on innovation and product development, the Financial Times reported on Monday.
Shares of HTC jumped following the report, on hopes that the change of duties among the top management will help it recapture the sparkle that saw it named Device Manufacturer of the Year at the World Mobile Congress in 2011, when its stock was flying high. The company's market value has roughly halved this year.
HTC, which positions itself as a premium brand, will contract out some manufacturing to FIH Mobile Ltd International, a subsidiary of Taiwan's Hon Hai Precision Industry, because contract manufacturers have better component supply management and cost control. It is also in talks with Compal Communications and Wistron Corp, according to four sources.
FIH and Hon Hai declined to comment. Spokesmen for Compal Communications and Wistron could not be reached for comment. HTC also declined to comment.
One of the sources said HTC's top management had agreed to separate the design and manufacturing businesses, which would more closely resemble Apple Inc's model of creating products in-house but then outsourcing to assemblers such as Hon Hai. Samsung Electronics Co Ltd both designs and manufacturers its smartphones.
However, sources said even if HTC splits the two operations, it would likely hold onto some of its factory capacity initially as the split-up would be a slow process and HTC might explore the possibility of making phones for others.
In a Town Hall meeting with staff on Tuesday, CEO Chou said HTC aimed to double its shares of the high-end smartphone market to 15 percent next year.
When asked about separating out the manufacturing business, he said the company did not rule out the possibility. The comments were reported by local media and confirmed by Ho.
At the end of June, HTC's cash position decreased to T$48.1 billion from T$55.5 billion a year earlier as cash flow turned negative. Its balance sheet also shows that bill payments increased while less money came in from customers. Receivables increased by T$7.9 billion, but accounts payable dropped T$7.8 billion.
HTC's return on assets (ROA) - an indicator of how effectively a company uses its assets to generate earnings - is expected to turn negative this year at -0.69 percent, the first time since 1999, according to SmartEstimates. ROA last year was 8.1 percent.
No potential bidders for the manufacturing space have surfaced so far, in part because the global smartphone and tablet PC supply chain is facing overcapacity, the sources said. As a result, HTC is also exploring other options to generate income by using its factories, sources said.
Several analyst and media reports said HTC was in talks with Chinese peer Lenovo Group Ltd and U.S. online retailer Amazon.com Inc. There is also speculation that Hon Hai will use HTC's plant for its own production.
Hon Hai said there was no plan to use HTC's production lines in Taoyuan now. Lenovo declined to comment and Amazon could not be reached for comment. ($1 = 29.4090 Taiwan dollars)
(Additional reporting by Umesh Desai in HONG KONG, Jeremy Wagstaff in SINGAPORE and Patturaja Murugaboopathy in BANGALORE; Editing by Emily Kaiser and Alex Richardson)

HTC Scales Back Smartphone Production Lines As Cash Flow Worsens

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image"><a href="http://pictures.reuters.com/C.aspx?VP3=SearchResult&amp;VBID=2C0BXZY1NK3QV&amp;SMLS=1&amp;RW=1399&amp;RH=843#/SearchResult&amp;VBID=2C0BXZY1NK3QV&amp;SMLS=1&amp;RW=1399&amp;RH=843&amp;PN=4&amp;POPUPPN=185&amp;POPUPIID=2C04080B6SQOM">Reuters/Bobby Yip/Files</a></div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/iphone">iPhones</a> will soon be made in India through Apple's top manufacturing partner, Taiwanese electronics maker <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/foxconn">Foxconn</a>.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/apple">Apple</a>'s cheaper iPhone models (SE and 6S) are already made in India, but this is the first time newer models, like the X family, will be produced there.</li><li>This may be part of Apple's efforts to move production out of Foxconn's plants in China, amidst the contentious US-China <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/trade-war">trade war</a>.</li><li>To be able to produce iPhones, Foxconn's expanded manufacturing plant will cost $356 million and add as many as 25,000 jobs.</li></ul>Apple Inc will begin assembling its top-end iPhones in India through the local unit of Foxconn as early as 2019, the first time the Taiwanese contract manufacturer will have made the product in the country, according to a source familiar with the matter.Importantly, Foxconn will be assembling the most expensive models, such as devices in the flagship iPhone X family, the source said, potentially taking Apple's business in India to a new level.The work will take place at Foxconn's plant in Sriperumbudur town in the southern state of Tamil Nadu, said the source, who is not authorized to speak to the media and so declined to be named.Foxconn, which already makes phones for Xiaomi Corp in India, will invest 25 billion Indian rupees ($356 million) to expand the plant, including investment in iPhone production, Tamil Nadu's Industries Minister M C Sampath told Reuters.The investment may create as many as 25,000 jobs, he added.Another source also said Foxconn planned to assemble iPhones in India, in a move that could help both it and Apple to limit the impact of a trade war between the United States and China.The Hindu newspaper first reported on Dec. 24 that the Foxconn plant would begin manufacturing various models of the iPhone. Reuters is first to report the size of the investment and the kind of phones to be assembled.Apple spokeswoman Trudy Muller declined to comment. Foxconn said it did not comment on matters related to current or potential customers, or any of their products.Read more: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/foxconn-cutting-costs-latest-warning-sign-for-apple-2018-11">Foxconn is slashing costs ahead of a 'difficult' year - and it's the latest warning sign for Apple</a><h2>Lower-end phones</h2>Until now, Cupertino, California-based Apple has only assembled the lower-cost SE and 6S models in India through Wistron Corp's local unit in the Bengaluru technology hub.Its sales in India have also been focused on lower-end phones - more than half of its sales volume is driven by models older than the iPhone 8, launched last year, according to technology research firm Counterpoint.Apple launched the pricey iPhone X last year but has cut production of that phone, according to industry analysts, since it began selling the newer versions, iPhone XS and XR, globally this year.Still, it could potentially get Foxconn to make the older iPhone X version in India where it sells cheaper models in a bid to get a bigger share of the world's fastest growing major mobile phone market.Full details of Apple's deal with Foxconn are not yet clear and could change.It is not known if any of the iPhone assembly is being moved from existing Foxconn factories in China and elsewhere. It is also unclear whether the production will be confined to assembly or include any component production in India.<h2>Looking beyond China</h2>For Apple, widening assembly beyond China is critical to mitigate the risks of the Sino-U.S. trade war.Foxconn, the world's biggest electronics contract manufacturer, is considering setting up a factory in Vietnam, Vietnamese state media reported this month. If that goes ahead, it will be one of the biggest recent steps by a major company to secure an additional production base outside of China.Foxconn has previously admitted the China-U.S. trade spat was its biggest challenge and that its senior executives were making plans to counter the impact."Widening iPhone manufacturing in India through Foxconn will allow Apple to hedge the risk of any new U.S. trade policies," said Navkendar Singh, an associate research director at International Data Corporation.Indian taxes on import of devices and components have also heightened Apple's headache in a market where it has only a 1 percent share by smartphone shipments.Making more phones locally will help Apple save costly duties and boost Prime Minister Narendra Modi's flagship drive to make India a manufacturing hub, Singh said.Apple shocked investors last month with a lower-than-expected sales forecast for the Christmas quarter that jolted parts suppliers across the world.Foxconn has previously expressed concern over demand for Apple's flagship devices. <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/iphone-switch-android-google-pixel-3-xl-apple-2018-11">I'm a diehard iPhone user who switched to Android for a week - here's what I loved and hated about the Google Pixel 3 XL</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

Apple's top manufacturer Foxconn will start making higher-end iPhones in India, moving production out of China amidst trade war

<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">APApple under CEO Tim Cook is reportedly looking to shift some of its product production out of China in the wake of the ongoing trade war.</div></div></div><ul class="summary-list"><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/apple">Apple's</a> reported interest in moving some of its product production out of <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/china">China</a> in the wake of the <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/trade-war">trade war</a> could take years to realize, supply chain experts told Business Insider.</li><li>The company's complex production system is set up to deliver supplies to and ship products out of China; redirecting that system elsewhere will take enormous time and effort, they said.</li><li>Right now, other countries don't have the infrastructure in place or enough trained labor for Apple to shift a significant amount of its production to them, the experts said.</li><li>But the company could be aided by the fact that many electronics makers are looking to shift production out of China, both because of the trade dispute and because of rising labor and regulatory compliance costs.</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/prime?module=article&amp;area=summary">Click here for more BI Prime stories</a>.</li></ul>Apple is looking for a new country to be its <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/iphone">iPhone</a> factory. After years of relying on China to build its electronics products, Apple is reportedly casting its gaze across the globe in search of new pastures. The move is due to the growing trade tensions with China, as President Trump threatens hundreds of billions of dollars in tariffs that would make the country a much less ideal manufacturing homebase.But moving out of China will create a variety of problems for Apple that could slow down production of its computers and smartphones, test its reputation for high quality, and, ultimately, not even guarantee that Apple would be completely out of the tariffs' reach. For that reason, Apple is unlikely to move more than a small, token portion of its manufacturing outside of China anytime soon, according to supply chain experts that Business Insider spoke to. While it makes sense for Apple to explore alternatives to China as a long-term strategy, the iPhone maker, like nearly all of the consumer electronics industry today, is just too firmly entrenched in the Asian nation and will have a difficult time extricating itself from there, they said."This is not stuff you can just pick up and relocate," said Ryan Reith, vice president of mobile devices at market research firm IDC. The process of moving production from China to another country is "a years thing," he continued, "not a months thing."<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">REUTERS/Stringer </div></div></div>It's important to note that Apple doesn't actually produce any of its devices on its own. Instead, it outsources production to <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/category/foxconn">Foxconn</a> and Pegatron, Taiwan-based contract manufacturers that have extensive networks of factories in China and other countries. Apple coordinates the supply of components to those factories and the distribution of finished products from them.Read this: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gba-gregor-berkowitz-says-manufacturers-are-moving-out-of-china-2019-5">The trade war is speeding up tech manufacturers' plans to move out of China, a longtime industry analyst says</a>On its face, Apple's reliance on contract manufacturers would seem to make shifting production to other countries easier. After all, those companies already have manufacturing plants outside of China. In fact, Foxconn Chairman Terry Gou, who is in the running to become President of Taiwan, recently <a href="https://markets.businessinsider.com/news/stocks/foxconn-founder-urges-apple-move-iphone-production-out-of-china-2019-6-1028298475">urged Apple to move its production from China to Taiwan</a>. And earlier this month, the head of Foxconn's semiconductor group said <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-backup-plan-foxconn-can-move-iphone-production-outside-china-2019-6?utm_source=markets&amp;utm_medium=ingest">the company was prepared to help Apple move production out of China</a> if it needed to.But moving production to other countries involves a lot more than setting up a line of equipment in a new building, the supply chain experts said. And Apple can't just move iPhone production by placing an order at another of its contractor's facilities.A plan by Foxconn to build an LCD factory in Wisconsin <a href="https://www.chicagotribune.com/business/ct-biz-foxconn-plant-hiring-target-20190205-story.html">has been mired in problems and delays</a> since it was announced a few years ago. Apple's plan to shift as much as 30% of its manufacturing capacity out of China to countries such as Vietnam, India, or Mexico, as the Nikkei Asian Review <a href="https://asia.nikkei.com/Economy/Trade-war/Apple-weighs-15-30-capacity-shift-out-of-China-amid-trade-war">reported</a> last week, is especially ambitious.<h2>Shifting production will be a big challenge</h2>As labor costs have risen in China, companies in industries like apparel, footwear, and automobile parts, have already started to move production out of China to Vietnam, Mexico, and other countries. There are existing electronics factories in areas outside of China, in countries like Mexico, Vietnam, Indonesia, and India. Some assemble products that use older, less-cutting edge technology, like the older iPhone 6 and 7 models that contractor Wistron Corp makes in Bangalore, India, according to Bloomberg. Apple is preparing trial productions of newer iPhones X models at a Foxconn facility in India, <a href="https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2019-04-02/foxconn-is-said-close-to-trial-output-of-newest-iphones-in-india">Bloomberg recently reported</a>, but it's not clear what level of output is expected if it successfully moves into mass production.Right now, nearly all of Apple's supply chain is organized around delivering components to production facilities in China and shipping goods from those factories to retailers and customers around the world, they said. Moving production to other areas of the world would require Apple to reorient its supply chain to those facilities, a daunting task.Part of the challenge is that many of Apple's suppliers and component makers are themselves located near the plants that make its finished goods, said IDC's Reith. Apple would either have to ask those suppliers to set up shop near its new plants outside of China or figure out how to ship their components to those new factories.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">Kin Cheung/AP</div></div></div>Getting the suppliers up and running in the new countries could make the task of moving take even longer. And sourcing any necessary components for the new factories from China could pose its own problems. Those components themselves could be subject to tariffs. And by not being close to Apple's plants, it could take longer for those component makers to make changes."The reason why China is such a manufacturing hub is not really about it having the cheapest labor," Reith said. "It's all those other aspects of manufacturing that take place there."<h2>Skilled workers can be hard to find</h2>Even if Apple is able to find or set up new factories in other countries and find suppliers for them, it still has to find people to work in the plants or for its component makers, the experts said. The company's products are known for the high quality of their manufacturing, said John Jordan, a clinical professor of supply chain and information systems at Penn State University's Smeal College of Business. Building a case for an iPhone or other components often requires precision techniques that few people are trained in, he said.Few of the workers that have those skills are likely to move to new plants outside of China, he said. But finding workers inside the countries where Apple might move could prove to be a big problem. While Vietnam and other countries have seen a pick up in manufacturing of apparel or other goods, the skills needed for such factories don't necessarily translate into making iPhones, Jordan said."You can't really convert what they're doing into what Apple needs anytime soon," he said.Also read: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-iphone-factory-foxconn-china-photos-tour-2018-5">Inside 'iPhone City,' the massive Chinese factory town where half of the world's iPhones are produced</a>Apple's Chinese plants have an extensive network of roads they can rely on to connect them to suppliers and distributors. They also have major shipping facilities close by and warehouses needed to store products. That type of infrastructure took decades to develop in China and isn't necessarily in place yet in other areas of the world."There's a whole host of infrastructure issues that have to be dealt with," said Abe Eshkenazi, CEO of the Association for Supply Chain Management, an industry group.<div class="KonaFilter image-container display-table"><div><div class="image on-image">REUTERS/Carlos Barria</div></div></div>Apple likely could shift a small amount of its production outside of China in a reasonably short time frame, said Bruce Arntzen, the executive director of the supply chain management program in MIT's engineering school. But it likely couldn't move a sizeable portion of it anytime soon, because of those labor and infrastructure issues. Other countries just don't have the capability right now to replace even a significant fraction of what Apple produces in China, he said."They would pretty quickly tie up most of capacity," Arntzen said.<h2>Moving will be a years-long process</h2>Thanks to such challenges, moving production out of China would likely be a long process.In a research note last week, Dan Ives, a financial analyst who covers Apple for Wedbush, estimated that the company could shift 5% to 7% of its iPhone production to India in 12 to 18 months. To move 15% of its smartphone production out of China to other countries would take about two to three years "given the complexity and logistics involved in such a gargantuan endeavor," he said.Those estimates roughly line up with those of the supply chain experts who spoke with Business Insider. Gregor Berkowitz, a longtime tech industry consultant who travels frequently in Asia, for example, thinks Apple could get some manufacturing moved to Taiwan in a matter of six months, but thinks it could take two to three years for it to get facilities up in running countries such as Thailand or Vietnam. Reith, for his part, thinks a move could be a three-year process, although he believes Apple has likely already started working on it."I don't see this as something that could happen overnight," he said.That said, a couple of factors may help ease such a transition for Apple. Because the company is such a major manufacturer and represents such an important client for many of its component makers, many of those suppliers are likely to be at its beck and call, said Berkowitz. If Apple says it plans to set up a factory in Vietnam or Indonesia, those suppliers will likely take their lead from it and move their operations with it, he said."For other companies" the question of whether suppliers would move with them to a new location "would be more concerning," he said. "But for Apple, because of their leverage, they're not going to see the same kinds of risks."And Apple's not likely alone in looking to move outside China. Because of the rising costs of producing there and the trade war, many electronics makers are exploring a shift in production. That's likely to spur even component makers that would be reluctant to set up shop elsewhere to do so anyway, Arntzen said."Everyone is in the position Apple is in," he said. "Because everyone's got the same problem," he continued, "it probably will happen sooner that the supply base moves to other countries."Got a tip about the tech industry? Contact this reporter via email at twolverton@businessinsider.com, message him on Twitter <a href="https://twitter.com/troywolv/">@troywolv</a>, or send him a secure message through Signal at 415.515.5594. You can also <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/how-to-tip-business-insider-securely-guide-signal-securedrop-2017-6"> contact Business Insider securely via SecureDrop</a>.<ul class="read-more-links"><li>Read more about the trade war:</li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/huawei-new-operating-system-is-likely-doomed-industry-experts-say-2019-6" data-read-more-link="" data-e2e-name="read-more-link">Huawei's plan to replace Android with its own operating system is likely doomed from the start, mobile industry experts say</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-huaweis-operating-system-effort-could-be-doomed-experts-say-2019-5" data-read-more-link="" data-e2e-name="read-more-link">3 tech execs who tried to create new smartphone and PC operating systems explain why Huawei's plan to build an Android replacement will be almost impossible</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/gregor-berkowitz-huawei-trump-hurt-google-2019-5" data-read-more-link="" data-e2e-name="read-more-link">A longtime industry expert explains why Trump's attack on Huawei could end up hurting Google and other US tech giants</a></li><li><a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/apple-china-hsbc-erwan-rambourg-report-survey-iphone-sales-2019-2">These 4 charts show why Apple's China troubles aren't going away anytime soon</a></li></ul> <div class="margin-top"> <h3>NOW WATCH: <a href="https://www.businessinsider.com/why-verizon-att-charge-more-extra-mobile-data-unlimited-plan-2019-6">Here's why phone companies like Verizon and AT&amp;T charge more for extra data</a></h3> <div> </div> </div>

You Searched For "wistron corp" and got 9 results

Apple puts iPhone partner Wistron on probation after rioting workers caused $7 million worth of damage at Indian plant

Kevin Shalvey

Coronavirus is pushing Apple's iPhone makers to find new manufacturing frontiers outside of China

Jessica Snouwaert

If investigators find Wistron management guilty, here's what is at stake for the company

Prabhjote Gill

Apple supplier might be planning India expansion as iPhone demand rises

BI India Bureau

10 things you need to know before the opening bell

Jonathan Garber

India wants to beat China at mobile manufacturing by expanding PLI schemes to more sectors

PTI

HTC Scales Back Smartphone Production Lines As Cash Flow Worsens

Clare Jim, Reuters

Apple's top manufacturer Foxconn will start making higher-end iPhones in India, moving production out of China amidst trade war

Reuters

Here's why Apple's plan to escape Trump's tariffs by building iPhones outside of China won't actually be possible anytime soon

Troy Wolverton

Popular Keywords

Buying Guides