The Government of India announced the relaxation of rules related to Foreign Direct Investment (FDI). This opens up a number of sectors to FDI and also clears the way for companies such as Apple to open its stores in India. According to a press statement released by the Government of India, “India is now the most open economy in the world for FDI.” The decision was taken at a meeting chaired by Prime Minister Narendra Modi.
Initially, a company was required to procure 30 percent of components locally if it wanted to sell its devices through its own retail stores. While India did offer waivers for “cutting-edge technology,” Bloomberg reported that the Foreign Investment Promotion Board (FIPB) decided not to certify Apple under than exception. As per the press statement, “It has now been decided to relax local sourcing norms up to three years and a relaxed sourcing regime for another five years for entities undertaking Single Brand Retail Trading of products having ‘state-of-art’ and ‘cutting edge’ technology.” Besides Single Brand Retail Trading, other sectors to be impacted by these changes include the Defence Sector, Civil Aviation, Private Security Agencies, and more.
Apple has been reportedly trying to open its stores in India for a while now. Back in February, it was reported that Apple was in talks with the Department of Industrial Policy and Promotion (DIPP). Apple’s initial paperwork was submitted and the Indian Government was reportedly keen on expediting the process of approval.