Indonesia blocks iPhone sales: Apple's investment is insufficient for the country

Indonesia, one of the largest smartphone markets in Southeast Asia, has taken a firm stance against foreign tech giants. It banned the sale of Apple's iPhone 16 and Google's Pixel phones in November because of strict requirements on the proportion of local components. Although Apple has offered to invest $100 million in manufacturing accessories and components in Indonesia, the government there has rejected the proposal as insufficient.

Local content requirements and emphasis on fairness

Indonesia has established a rule that all smartphones and tablets sold in its market must contain at least 40% locally made components. The move is intended to encourage the development of domestic industry and reduce dependence on imports. However,both Apple $AAPL and Google $GOOG have failed to comply with these rules, leading to a ban on the sale of their latest devices.

Apple last week proposed a $100 million investment to build an accessories and components factory in Bandung, West Java. However,…