Overall sales of the iPhone 16 will likely be affected this year and the next because the Indonesian government have banned Apple’s latest lineup, that is unless the technology giant can bump up its investment in the region. According to the latest report, the government now requires the company to inject a whopping $1 billion to lift the ban.
Investment minister expects Apple to invest the $1 billion amount within the week for the iPhone 16 ban to be lifted
One of the reasons why Apple has been barred from selling the iPhone 16 in Indonesia is because it previously used to make routine investments in the country, allowing for opportunities to thrive there. Unfortunately, that came to a stop, forcing the government to act. Since October 2024, all iPhone 16 models have been banned until the investment arrives. Apple attempted to appease the government with a $10 million figure, but that plan failed miserably, so the firm tried to make amends by upping that amount to $100 million.
Sadly, even that amount appeared to be negligible because the Indonesian lawmakers want Apple to invest $1 billion in the country, making it 100 times the amount initially proposed by the California-based giant. As reported by Reuters, with the information spotted by AppleInsider, Investment Minister Rosan Roeslani stated publicly that he expected the investment amount from Apple within a week but did not highlight any repercussions if the Cupertino titan would not keep its word.
Rosan’s reasoning is simple; if Apple is benefitting from iPhone 16 sales in Indonesia, then it must also invest in the region to create jobs. Indonesia does hold some importance for the company, as it shipped around 2.9 million units in 2023, and that number seems to be climbing. Additionally, seeing as how the Trump administration continues to enforce trade sanctions on China, Apple may soon view Indonesia as a manufacturing base like India and Vietnam, though it has yet to comment on Rosan’s latest remarks.
It is in Apple’s best interest to resume iPhone 16 sales in multiple countries as much as it can, and the $1 billion investment can also turn into a future opportunity where the company receives some concessions from the government, such as importing raw materials. Whatever the possibilities might be, we will update our readers in the future, so stay tuned.
News Source: Reuters
