Apple CEO Tim Cook revealed that the sale of iPhones and iPads had witnessed double-digit growth in "emerging market" India in Q3 – October to December of 2019, according to media reports on 28 December.
Smartphone revenues amounted to $56 billion, up 8 percent from December 2018, riding on the popularity of the iPhone 11, which was launched in September 2019.
On the contrary to other budget-friendly smartphone brands, the starting prices of expensive
In India the iPhone 11, 11 Pro and 11 Pro Max cost INR 64,900 ($911 approx.), INR 99,900 ($1,402 approx.) and INR 1,09,900 ($1,543 approx.), respectively, and are seen as a status symbol in a country where these sums represent more than a year's wages for much of the population.
In 2019, the Indian market research firm Counterpoint, however, estimated that Apple sales grew rapidly at the end of the year, by 41 percent between October and December 2019. This was due to sale prices on 2018 iPhone XR phones, which are manufactured locally.
In September, 2019, Apple invested $1 billion to boost manufacturing within India. The California-based tech giant continued to invest heavily in 2019, aiming at its retail expansion in the country. The new series of iPhones, including iPhone 11 devices, were introduced at a lower price in India than the iPhone XR when it was launched.
In November 2019, India-produced iPhones hit the shelves in national and global markets as well.
At the time, Indian Telecom Minister Ravi Shankar Prasad claimed that the country was expected to export $1.6 billion worth of mobile phones and components in 2019, confirmation to which was yet to come.
Between July and September 2019, Apple also garnered a hefty revenue of $64 billion, 60 percent of which was contributed by markets outside the US.
While Apple failed to disclose specifics about its India revenue last October, Luca Maestri, Chief Financial Officer (CFO) of the Cupertino-based tech giant did note that the company posted its all-time record for its MacBook netbook sales in the country.
In India, Apple MacBooks, cost a hefty INR 60,000 ($850 approx.) and can cost more than INR 225,000 ($3,000 approx.) for 8th Gen MacBook Pro laptops.