Apple assembly partner Pegatron is said to be moving some manufacturing of iPads and MacBooks from China to Indonesia. The move is likely due to the ongoing trade war between the United States and China.
A DigiTimes report from Thursday claims the company will subcontract work to Batam’s PT Sat Nusapersada. While Abidin Hasibuan, CEO of PT Sat Nusapersada, didn’t deny that his company would begin assembling products in June. The CEO didn’t specify who the client would be, saying only that the products would be shipped to the US, says the report.
Pegatron recently formed a partnership with PT, and is spending $200 million on refurbishing two plants in Indonesia. However, the purpose of the refurbishing hasn’t been established.
The local report indicates that Indonesia was chosen over Vietnam thanks to a better supply of workers.
Pegtron’s move is likely in response to the threat of more U.S. tariffs on CHinese-produced goods by the Trump administration. New tariffs could be imposed as soon as June, likely raising costs on Apple products like iPads, iPhone, and Macs.