Apple CEO visits India, likely to visit Hyderabad

The Dollar Business Bureau

Tim Cook, CEO of American multinational – Apple Inc, is coming to Hyderabad, where he is expected to inaugurate Apple’s development centre and to have a meeting with Prime Minister Narendra Modi on the company’s plans for manufacturing in the country. Cook’s itinerary is to visit India after his visit to China.

According to sources, the Apple CEO may arrive in the country on Wednesday, and is likely to meet PM Modi later in the week and also some officials of important ministries.

Cook is expected to inaugurate the company’s development centre in Hyderabad on May 19, in which it has already invested $100 million.

Cook's India visit comes at a critical juncture as the iPhone maker is trying to tap into India as the second largest smartphone market in the world. 

The Apple CEO is likely to have a discussion with government officials on matters relating to manufacturing in the country and the potential of India’s technology market.

After witnessing a decline in iPhone sales for the first time, Apple is now targeting new growth markets such as India. Apple’s China sales fell 11 percent, whereas in India sales of iPhones jumped 56 percent compared to the previous year. 

The technology giant, based in the US, also seeks approval from the Indian government to sell refurbished phones in the country. However, no progress has been made yet on the matter. 

As per the numbers revealed by the research firm Counterpoint, the smartphone market in India grew 23 percent in the period January-March 2016, beating US to become the second largest nation in terms of smartphone users. This has been achieved despite the sales of smartphones remaining flat globally in the same period.