Apple’s biggest assembly partner, Foxconn, has ordered more than 300 of its Chinese employees to return home from its iPhone factories in India, Bloomberg reported, citing anonymous sources.
The employees told to return account for the bulk of Foxconn’s staff in its iPhone facilities in India, and only Taiwanese support staff remain in the country, the report said.
The motivation behind the order was not immediately clear, Bloomberg reported, though the outlet noted that Chinese officials have been asking regulators to curb knowledge and tech resources from being exported to India in a bid to preserve the country’s manufacturing heft.
The move comes as Foxconn and other Apple suppliers have been ramping up manufacturing in India as the iPhone maker seeks to reduce its reliance on Chinese manufacturing for its hardware. In May, Foxconn received Indian government approval to build a $435 million semiconductor plant in the country.
Apple’s CEO Tim Cook has said the company is importing more iPhones from India as one way to handle the uncertainties around U.S. tariffs and trade risks.
