PLI Boom: India's Electronics Imports Drop As Local Manufacturing Rises; Here's All About It

India's domestic manufacturing of electronics is expanding each year, with a growing number of components being produced in the country.

This trend has led to a significant decline in imports of various electronic parts such as mechanics, vibrator motors, charger adapters, plastic parts, and more, both in terms of value and volume.

According to a report from The Economic Times, imports of fully assembled electronic units like smartphones have dropped by 40 per cent during April-January FY24.

Market analysts attribute this decline to the increased local manufacturing of electronics, particularly smartphones, which saw a 5 per cent year-on-year growth in 2023.

This growth has been fueled by the government's production-linked incentive (PLI) scheme, encouraging manufacturers to source components locally, thereby impacting the bill of materials (BoM).

Imports of plastic parts used in smartphones, including the back cover, GSM antenna, and camera lens, have decreased by 33 per cent in volume and 26.5 per cent in value in the first 10 months of FY24 compared to the previous year.

Similarly, imports of mechanical parts, which include vibrator motors, screws, and sockets, have also declined by 4 per cent in volume and 1.6 per cent in value.

Imports of charger adapters accompanying mobile phones and electronic devices have seen a substantial 72 per cent decline in volume during the April to January 2024 period compared to FY23. However, the import value saw a slight 1.3 per cent year-on-year increase during the same period.

In the period from April to December 2023, India's electronics exports surged by a record 22.24 per cent to surpass the $20-billion mark, propelled by strong smartphone exports by companies like Apple and Samsung. iPhones alone accounted for $7 billion worth of exports in December 2023, representing 35 per cent of total electronics exports.