Vietnam

President Donald Trump’s new import tariffs will hit Apple hard. The president slapped all major manufacturing countries that Apple operates in with heavy import tariffs Wednesday in a bid to reshape international trade.

“It’s our declaration of economic independence,” Trump said during a speech at the White House announcing the tariffs. “Today we are standing up for the American worker and we are finally putting America first.”

This move undermines Apple’s efforts in recent years to diversify its supply chain away from China. The White House says the reciprocal tariffs will go into effect on April 9.

Apple’s efforts to move iPhone assembly to India and Vietnam are reportedly being hampered by the Chinese government.

The iPhone-maker wants to increase the number of countries in which its products are assembled amidst a worsening U.S./China trade war.

Apple CEO Tim Cook told the president of Indonesia Wednesday the company will “look at” manufacturing in the country, according to reports.

Such a move would make for another expansion of Apple’s push to diversify manufacturing sites outside of China, as it has done in Vietnam and India.

Vietnam is the latest country to get an online Apple store to shop for iPhone, Mac and other products.

It’s the latest move in the company’s efforts to increase sales in Asia — Thursday’s opening comes a month after Apple opened its first retail stores in India.

The lockdown in Shanghai and nearby regions, and China’s strict zero-COVID policy, have forced Apple to move some iPad production out of the country and to Vietnam for the first time.

The company already expects to take an $8 billion revenue hit in the ongoing quarter due to supply chain disruptions caused by the Chinese lockdowns.

Apple’s plan to start assembling more products in Vietnam is reportedly on hold due to COVID-19 disruptions and limited engineering resources.

It is believed the company’s third-generation AirPods, expected to arrive later this year, will be mass-produced in China instead.

In order to quell the spread of COVID-19, at least one Apple supplier set up coronavirus “bubbles” for employees on its production lines, essentially sealing off workers from the outside world.

According to a Tuesday report by Nikkei Asia, several factories in Vietnam — including one owned by AirPods manufacturer GoerTek — took this precautionary measure as COVID-19 cases ramp up in the country.

The coronavirus pandemic might be winding down in the United States, but it’s still wreaking havoc in other parts of the world. And that includes hammering Apple’s supply chain.

The coronavirus pandemic continues to wreak havoc on Apple’s supply chain (as well as everywhere else), with two Apple suppliers ordered to temporarily shutter factories in Vietnam as a result of a surge of COVID cases in the region.

The companies in question, Foxconn and Luxshare Precision, operate plants in Vietnam’s northern region. The area has seen a big rise in cases, including two over the weekend at Luxshare’s plant in Van Trung Industrial Park.

For years, China has been Apple’s biggest manufacturing hub for building its devices. But that’s now changing, with a report Wednesday claiming that Apple is “ramping up” production of iPhones, iPads, Macs, and other products in other parts of the world.

This is an attempt by Apple to diversify manufacturing beyond China, following trade tensions between the U.S. and China in recent years.

Foxconn is building a $270 million factory in Vietnam, likely in response to Apple’s desire to move some iPad and MacBook production out of China.

Apple has reportedly asked Foxconn to shift some iPad and MacBook production from China to Vietnam. The move is said to be a precautionary measure designed to minimize any impact of ongoing trade tensions between the U.S. and China, sources say.

Apple appears to be diversifying production outside Mainland China as a report Tuesday claims the company will be manufacturing its long-rumored over-the-ear headphones in Vietnam as well as China.

The coronavirus and its aftermath appear to be taking a toll on manufacturing of updated AirPods, with a new report indicating an update to Apple’s popular earbuds will be delayed slightly and roll into the first quarter of 2021.

The Nikkei Asian Review also reported Friday sources as saying around 30% of all classic AirPods to be produced this quarter for Apple will be “made in Vietnam”. That the report said is “a sign the company is accelerating its diversification of production out of China amid the coronavirus pandemic.”

Apple reportedly will expand the number of companies that can assemble iPhones. Luxshare Precision could join a rather exclusive club, according to reliable analyst, supposedly to reduce the risk that problems with one manufacturer will cause a shortage of iPhone units.

Apple supplier Pegatron is looking to Vietnam as a location to possibly carry out some of its manufacturing work.

The move would help Pegatron, one of Apple’s biggest suppliers, diversify beyond its current home in China.

A British travel photographer is currently stuck in Vietnam after airport officials refused to let him board a flight because he was carrying a recalled 15-inch MacBook Pro.

Julian Elliott found out during a security check that his MacBook with Retina display was made between Sept. 2015 and February 2017. Apple recalled these models after reports of overheating batteries and fires that cause burns and property damage.

Apple is gearing up to carry out a trial production of AirPods in Vietnam. This is as part of Apple’s aim to expand manufacturing outside of China.

Earlier this summer, Apple asked its suppliers to explore manufacturing in other markets. This was at a time when concerns about possible China tariffs were at their height.

iPhone assembly partner Foxconn is considering the possibility of opening a new facility in Vietnam in an effort to avoid U.S. trade tariffs.

The factory would focus specifically on iPhone production, according to a new report. Vietnam Chamber of Commerce and Industry Vu Tien Loc says talks with Foxconn are underway.

The coiled hose left a mark on the grass, a fading of color where the sun could not shine.

From this moment on his front lawn, Binh Danh realized he could create a photographic process using sunlight, leaves and grass. He had no idea his method would develop into an organic process of self-discovery.

On leaves from his family’s garden, Danh brings fresh examination to an old war, printing haunted faces and horrific scenes from the Vietnam conflict with light and chlorophyll.

Smartphone user habits may change depending on where you are in the world, but one thing remains largely the same: the iPhone (and Apple brand) is a status symbol.

With that in mind, Apple is tapping FPT Corp., Vietnam’s biggest listed information and communication technology company, to help grow its market share across Vietnam and Southeast Asia.

As with China, developing markets such as Vietnam represent important potential hotbeds for Apple to target, and establishing a presence early is of the utmost importance. According to Lam Nguyen, Ho Chi Minh City-based country director at International Data Corp, Vietnamese smartphone sales will increase by around 56 percent to 12 million units in 2014 alone — and Apple should be in a position to get a large chunk of those sales.

A Vietnamese book publisher has just published a touching, beautifully designed 2012 memorial calendar to the life of Steve Jobs, filled with the most iconic Steve shots of the last thirty years and aspirational quotes from the fiery, passionate Apple founder himself on the way to live life.