(Bloomberg) — Indonesia has blocked Apple from selling its latest iPhone 16 devices in Southeast Asia’s largest economy, saying it has not yet met domestic investment requirements.
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India’s Ministry of Industry announced in a statement on October 25 that the iPhone 16, which was released in September, cannot be sold in the country because PT Apple Indonesia, a local subsidiary, does not meet the 40% local content requirement for smartphones in the country. did.
This is a big test for Apple, which has enjoyed strong sales of its flagship products as business demand grows, especially in China. Indonesia is a $1 trillion economy with an estimated number of active mobile phones at over 350 million, far more than the country’s population of 270 million.
The Ministry of Industry earlier announced that Apple invested only 1.5 trillion rupiah ($95 million) in Indonesia, less than the 1.7 trillion rupiah promised. Instead of establishing local manufacturing facilities, Apple has been establishing developer academies.
According to the ministry, about 9,000 iPhone 16s have entered Indonesia so far, either by hand-carrying by passengers or crew members or by mail. However, these are only allowed for personal use and cannot be traded.
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