President Donald Trump on Thursday mildly criticized Apple CEO Tim Cook for the company’s growing production footprint in India, urging him to shift operations back to the United States.
“I said to him, ‘My friend, I treated you very good... now I hear you’re building all over India. I don’t want you building in India,’” Trump said during a speech, referencing Apple’s recent moves to diversify away from China.
"I told Tim Cook we're not interested in you building (Apple) in India, they can take care of themselves, you up your production here (US)," claimed Trump. He added that India was one of the highest tariff-imposing countries & has now made an offer to reduce tariffs significantly… pic.twitter.com/11p9okfjTg
— CNBC-TV18 (@CNBCTV18News) May 15, 2025
Apple is aiming to produce 25 percent of its iPhones in India over the next few years. Currently, around 90 percent are made in China. Trump cited Apple’s February pledge to invest $500 billion in the U.S. and said that goodwill should lead to more domestic manufacturing.
Why are we all antsy about Trump telling Tim Cook to not build in India but to build in the US? This is exactly what India needs to be telling its own manufacturers too - build here, not in China.
— Deepak Shenoy (@deepakshenoy) May 15, 2025
Every country's leaders wants jobs for their own people.
“We’re not interested in you building in India,” Trump said. “India can take care of themselves... we want you to build here.”Cook has not yet responded to the comments.
