New Delhi: During a recent visit to Qatar, U.S. President Donald Trump revealed that he advised Apple CEO Tim Cook to cut down on iPhone production in India and shift more manufacturing to the U.S. While Trump’s remarks stirred speculation, media reports suggest that Apple is still going ahead with its India investment plans, including a major manufacturing expansion.

Apple executives have assured Indian government officials that the company’s investment plans remain unchanged and that India will continue to be a key manufacturing hub for Apple, as per media reports.

Earlier on Thursday, U.S. President Donald Trump said he told Apple CEO Tim Cook he does not want him “building in India” and that “India can take care of themselves.” The remarks were made during a business forum in Qatar, the final stop of Trump’s three-nation tour of West Asia. “I said to him, ‘my friend, I am treating you very good. You are coming up with $500 billion… but now I hear you are building in India. I don’t want you building in India. You can build in India… because India is one of the highest tariff nations in the world, so it is very hard to sell in India.”

Trump later claimed that Apple, one of the world’s most valuable companies, would move its factories back to the U.S. However, Apple has not made any such announcement. While the company had pledged to invest 500 billion dollars in U.S. manufacturing, actually shifting large-scale production isn’t that simple. Rebuilding supply chains big enough to support the nearly 76 million iPhones sold in the U.S. in 2024 would be a major challenge.

India was among the first countries to begin trade talks with the U.S. following Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s visit to the White House in February. Both sides are aiming to complete the first phase of a trade deal by this autumn. To move things forward, India’s commerce minister will visit the U.S. from May 17 to 20 for more discussions with officials from the Trump administration.