Foxconn is now equipped to assemble Printed Circuit Boards (PCBs) in India. For the unaware, Foxconn is the contract manufacturer behind the manufacturing of Nokia branded smartphones. With the ability to manufacture PCBs in India, Foxconn could avoid the 10% duties which Indian govt intends to imply on the import of PCBs.

PCBs together make up for upto 50% of the cost of a smartphone. Experts say that local manufacturing will help Nokia/HMD keep the pricing intact, whereas OEMs which are still importing PCBs will either have to cut their margins or increase the prices of their smartphones. This will make HMD gain an edge against at-least some part of the competition. Samsung is said to be the only major brand that assembles PCBs in India.

One interesting fact is that Foxconn acquired machinery that enables surface mounting on PCBs from the now-defunct Nokia plant in Sriperumbudur. Moving on, Foxconn is also in talks with the Tamil Nadu government to revive the old Nokia plant which Nokia was unable to sell due to tax dispute.