Centre slashes import duty on mobile phone parts to 10%

In a bid to further boost mobile manufacturing in the country, the government has slashed import duty on parts used for manufacturing of mobile phones to 10 per cent from 15 per cent.

The finance ministry said in a notification that the import duty on parts such as battery covers, main lens, back cover, other mechanical items of plastic and metal, among others, has been reduced to 10 per cent.

The move will help companies like Apple to manufacture more of its high-end premium smartphones in the country.

India’s smartphone input tariffs are currently the highest among the competing manufacturing destinations.

India’s smartphone manufacturing has been transformed from 78 per cent import dependency in revenue terms in 2014-15 to only 4 per cent in 2022-23.

Now, 99.2 per cent of mobile phones sold in India are made in the country. Exports have become the main driver of future growth and job creation.

India’s smartphone exports jumped 100 per cent in FY 2022-23 to $11.1 billion over the previous fiscal.

The industry expects exports of $15 billion in FY 2024. Exports will form 30 per cent of the total production of $49-50 billion in current fiscal.

Unless India can match China and Vietnam’s competitive tariff regime in addition to other factors which impact competitiveness, export growth will also start seeing a slowdown beyond the current fiscal, revealed the latest report by the India Cellular and Electronics Association (ICEA), the nation’s top electronics manufacturing industry body.