Apple takes margin hit on iPhone 17 to maintain India value aggressive | Devices

If it had not executed so, customers would have needed to pay round Rs 15,000 extra for the telephone reasonably than the brand new listed value of the entry-level iPhone 17 at Rs 99,000, in line with distributors and retailers conscious of the pricing play of the Cupertino-headquartered firm. An electronic mail question to Apple Inc, nevertheless, didn’t elicit any response.

After all, the iPhone 17 and different non-Pro and Pro Max fashions account for 87 per cent of the overall gross sales of Apple Inc within the nation by way of volumes and have been essential to making sure double-digit progress in gross sales quarter-on-quarter in India, making it one of many fastest-growing markets on the earth. More importantly, the iPhone 17, even regardless of its premium value, was the largest-selling single-model smartphone within the nation within the first quarter of 2026, with a 4 per cent share of total smartphones, in line with Counterpoint Research.

The fundamental value of the mannequin (earlier than taxes and vendor margins) within the US and the world for the entry-level 256 GB providing is pegged at $899, or Rs 85,904. However, in India, Apple Inc has to fork out an extra Rs 2,500 on every telephone as import responsibility on elements used within the telephone to the federal government. Over and above that, it additionally pays a margin of 10 per cent to its retailers, who account for almost 70 per cent of its gross sales. And on prime of it’s the imposition of one other 18 per cent as GST. As a outcome, the overall influence on customers, if all the pieces had been handed on, would have made the promoting value Rs 114,752.

The hole between the value paid by customers in India and the US is way decrease than what meets the attention. In the US, the $899 value doesn’t embrace state taxes, which differ from state to state (although there are some states the place it’s obtainable at zero) and will go as much as 10 per cent. So, on common, the hole between the India and US costs is round Rs 6,000. And in India, the corporate is providing Rs 5,000 as cashback for purchasing a brand new telephone, which almost neutralises the distinction.

However, Apple Inc does move on most of the price of the top-end telephones just like the iPhone Pro and iPhone Pro Max, in addition to the brand new introduction, the Duo, to customers. The Duo’s base value within the US and the world is $1,999 (consumers additionally should pay extra tax relying on the state), however its promoting value in India is greater at Rs 299,000.

As these telephones are at the moment being imported and never being assembled in India, Apple has to pay a 16.5 per cent customs responsibility on them, aside from 18 per cent GST and the next retail margin of round 11 per cent. As a outcome, when these components are added, the value of the Duo involves its declared promoting value in India.