Trump again asks Apple to start manufacturing in US
Washington, Sep 9 : After Apple hinted at increasing the price of its products owing to tariffs on China, US President Donald Trump has once again asked the iPhone maker to shift manufacturing from Beijing to Washington.
Apple has written a letter to the Trump administration, saying the proposed $200 billion tariffs on China-made products will make the Apple Watch, AirPods headphones, HomePod smart speaker, Macs and key computer parts more expensive.
"Apple prices may increase because of the massive Tariffs we may be imposing on China - but there is an easy solution where there would be ZERO tax, and indeed a tax incentive," Trump tweeted on Saturday.
"Make your products in the United States instead of China. Start building new plants now. Exciting! MAGA." In January 2017, Trump said he spoke to Apple CEO Tim Cook over the phone and he promised to build "three big plants" in the US.
But Cook never directly responded to that claim.
What Apple actually announced in January was to contribute $350 billion to the US economy over the next five years that includes an estimated $55 billion investment in 2018.
In a letter written to the US Trade Representative on Friday, Apple said some of its popular products will get hit by the 25 per cent increase in import tax as proposed by the Trump administration on Chinese products.
Other products are Magic Mouse, Magic Trackpad, Apple Pencil, Apple adapters, chargers, cables and cords, Apple main logic boards with microprocessing units, memory modules, video graphic/audio cards and PCBAs, Apple computer parts (e.g., housings and internal components) and printed circuit boards, among others
"Because all tariffs ultimately show up as a tax on US consumers, they will increase the cost of Apple products that our customers have come to rely on in their daily lives," Apple wrote in the letter.
According to a report in The Verge, Apple asked that the US revise its proposal and decline to place tariffs on the product categories that cover these devices.
The company's hardware products have taken it to become a $1 trillion company but those products are built in China which also creates thousands of jobs.
Apple is set to unveil new iPhones and other services on September 12.
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Sanjay Raut demands re-election, alleges irregularities in EVMs during Maharashtra polls
Mumbai, Nov 25: Shiv Sena (UBT) MP Sanjay Raut on Monday demanded a re-election in Maharashtra using ballot papers, claiming there were irregularities with the electronic voting machines (EVMs).
Talking to reporters, Raut alleged several complaints about EVMs malfunctioning and questioned the integrity of the recently held elections.
The BJP-led Mahayuti won 230 out of 288 seats in the assembly elections, while the opposition Maha Vikas Aghadi managed 46 seats, with Shiv Sena (UBT) winning just 20 out of 95 seats it contested.
"We have received nearly 450 complaints regarding EVMs. Despite raising objections repeatedly, no action has been taken on these issues. How can we say these elections were conducted fairly? Hence, I demand that the results be set aside and elections be held again using ballot papers," Raut said.
Citing some instances, he said a candidate in Nashik reportedly received only four votes despite having 65 votes from his family, while in Dombivli, discrepancies were found in EVM tallies, and election officials refused to acknowledge the objections.
The Sena (UBT) leader also questioned the credibility of the landslide victories of some candidates, saying, "What revolutionary work have they done to receive more than 1.5 lakh votes? Even leaders who recently switched parties have become MLAs. This raises suspicions. For the first time, a senior leader like Sharad Pawar has expressed doubts about EVMs, which cannot be ignored."
Asked about the MVA's poor performance in the elections, Raut rejected the idea of blaming a single individual.
"We fought as a united MVA. Even a leader like Sharad Pawar, who commands immense respect in Maharashtra, faced defeat. This shows that we need to analyse the reasons behind the failure. One of the reasons is EVM irregularities and the misuse of the system, unconstitutional practices, and even judicial decisions left unresolved by Justice Chandrachud," he said.
Raut stressed that though internal differences might have existed within the MVA, the failure was collective.
He also accused the Mahayuti of conducting the elections in an unfair manner.
"I cannot call the elections fair given the numerous reports of discrepancies in EVMs, mismatched numbers, and vote irregularities across the state," Raut said.
