After four years of quiet pressure from New Delhi to “make in India and ship abroad,” several Chinese smartphone and consumer–electronics brands have begun routing exports out of their Indian factories. FY-24 filings show Oppo Mobiles India earning its first ₹272 crore in foreign-exchange revenue, while Realme Mobile Telecommunications (India) booked ₹114 crore. The shift coincides with tighter regulatory scrutiny of Chinese firms since the 2020 border standoff and a stated government preference for deeper localisation, Indian board representation, and an Indian-owned distribution network.
Officials say informal meetings with regulators made it clear: manufacture locally, partner with Indian firms, export, and appoint Indians to senior posts. While the last demand remains unmet, brands have accelerated the first three, keen to keep India—now the world’s second-largest smartphone market—open for business.
Local Partnerships, PLI Sweeteners and Ramp-Up at Indian Plants
Much of the new export momentum is flowing through Indian contract manufacturers:
- Dixon Technologies—already assembling Motorola handsets for Lenovo—will expand smartphone capacity by 50 per cent to meet US-bound demand. The company also builds devices for Transsion Holdings (Itel, Tecno, Infinix), which has started shipping to Africa.
- Hisense Group, in alliance with Epack Durable, is investing ₹100 crore in a Sri City plant that will replicate designs from its Chinese lines and send televisions and appliances to West Asia and Africa from early 2026.
- Lenovo is readying exports of servers and laptops made in India, even as its Motorola unit already ships smartphones to North America.
- Haier is scouting partners to replicate the model for refrigerators, air-conditioners and TVs.
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Although most Chinese brands do not qualify directly for India’s production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, their Indian partners do—giving the ecosystem the cash-flow to scale quickly. Executives say the PLI carrot, combined with geopolitical risks surrounding China-centred supply chains and possible US tariffs, has strengthened the case for dual-source manufacturing.
India’s Smartphone Export Boom—and What Comes Next
Smartphones were India’s single largest export item in FY-25, soaring 55 per cent year-on-year to US $24.14 billion. Apple accounted for roughly US $17.4 billion, Samsung most of the balance, and Chinese brands only a sliver—so far. Government officials believe Chinese firms can no longer ignore that gap.
Industry trackers see three trends taking shape:
- Supply-chain diversification: Brands want an insurance policy against China-origin tariffs and shipping volatility.
- Export-led credibility: Sending made-in-India devices to mature markets such as the US helps rebuild trust after India’s tax investigations and data-security probes.
- Up-the-value ladder: Once volumes stabilise, companies can move from final assembly to deeper component integration—PCBs, camera modules, battery packs—aligning with India’s push for a broader electronics ecosystem.
Challenges remain. No Chinese electronics player operating in India has yet named an Indian national as CEO or managing director, a sticking point for policymakers. Brand executives also cite supply-chain gaps in semiconductors and precision components, although those may narrow with the new chip fabrication and OSAT projects announced this year.