The income tax department has carried out searches at the Chennai facility of Flex, a supplier of Apple products, in Tamil Nadu, according to Reuters.

Tax sleuths visited the Chennai factory as part of their inquiry. Flex has yet to be informed about the purpose of the visit, the news agency reported, citing a source.

In 2019, US-based electrical and electronics component manufacturer Flex announced that it was planning to expand its business from China to other geographies, including India, and had set aside investments to the tune of $500 Mn for India.

Meanwhile, another Apple supplier in India, Pegatron, is enduring a production halt due to a fire incident at its factory near Chennai. The fire was reportedly triggered by a short circuit after an electrical switch was accidentally left on after the testing of devices during the assembly process.

Apple has been involved in smartphone assembly in India since 2017. However, a notable shift occurred when Apple commenced the assembly of iPhone 14 models in the country.

The tech giant has now emerged as the top smartphone exporter in India, surpassing Samsung. In the June 2023 quarter, out of the total 12 Mn smartphone shipments originating from India, Apple secured a significant market share at 49%, while Samsung’s market share stood at 45%.

India became Apple’s fifth-largest iPhone market in the second quarter of 2023, as the country surpassed Germany and France in iPhone sales during the quarter. In addition, India contributed close to 4% of all iPhone sales in the second quarter, according to Counterpoint.

Earlier this year, Apple CEO Tim Cook launched the first Apple store in Mumbai and a second one in Delhi within a few days.