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India-China tensions reportedly delaying imports of Apple and Xiaomi devices

India is reportedly delaying imports of China-made smartphones, smartwatches, laptops, and more.
By
November 26, 2020
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TL;DR
  • India is holding up imports of Apple, Xiaomi and other devices made in China.
  • The delay is attributed to pending approvals from the Bureau of Indian Standards.
  • Delayed products include smartphones, smartwatches, and laptops.

Made-in-China devices from Xiaomi, Apple, and other tech companies are apparently facing import delays in India owing to increased tensions between the two countries.

According to Reuters, Apple’s iPhone 12 series and other products from Xiaomi and OPPO are getting held up in India at the quality control level.

The publication reports that the processing of applications submitted to the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS) — a regulatory body that needs to certify all consumer devices sold in India — is being delayed. BIS usually takes about 15 days to process applications, but due to the ongoing territorial tussle between India and China, the application processing times for products entering from China have gone up to two months or longer.

BIS is holding up import approvals for China-made smartwatches, smartphones, and laptops. The development follows the recent ban on several Chinese apps in India, including popular ones like PUBG Mobile, Aliexpress, and hundreds of others.

Also read: The best Android smartphones you can buy in India

Apple executives apparently called on BIS to speed up approvals after iPhone 12 imports from China were delayed. The Cupertino giant reportedly assured the Indian government that it’ll expand its existing iPhone assembly operations in India to reduce reliance on imports from China.

Reuters reports that as of November 25, 1,080 applications for laptops, tablets, and other devices were pending with the BIS. 669 of those have been held up for more than 20 days, as per the agency’s website. Some applications remain pending since September.

“While the BIS is delaying approvals for products like smartwatches, the Ministry of Electronics and Information Technology is pushing companies to make these devices in India,” a source told Reuters.

BIS, Apple, Xiaomi, and OPPO have not responded to requests for comments from the outlet.