iPhone shift hits India's EU electronics exports

But $50 bn export aim holds as EU smartphone shipments drop after Apple's US pivot

- SURAJEET DAS GUPTA

Electronics in which smartphones accounted for over 60 per cent of total value was the third-largest commodity exported from India to the European Union (EU), reaching $11.79 billion in 2024-25, a 37 per cent increase over the previous year.

The only commodities ahead were engineering goods and petroleum products.

Apple Inc, leveraging zero-duty imports to the EU— similar to the US — was one of the key players, shipping iPhones assembled in India to Europe, largely to the Netherlands, from where they were distributed across the region. However, the equation has changed dramatically.