Company pledges China investment increases for Sharp products
Key iPhone assembler Hon Hai Precision Industry, better known as Foxconn Technology Group, is mulling a joint investment with Apple Inc. in an advanced, highly automated U.S. display facility, Chairman Terry Gou said Sunday.
"Apple is willing to invest in the facility together because they need the [panels] as well," Gou told reporters after the company's annual year-end party in the Nankang district of Taipei.
The Taiwanese tycoon added that the facility's cost would exceed $7 billion and would eventually create some 30,000-50,000 jobs.
The Nikkei Asian Review reported in November that Apple had asked Foxconn to look into making iPhones in the U.S., and earlier this month reported the company and Sharp Corporation, its Japanese subsidiary, were exploring the possible construction of a U.S. display plant.
Apple did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Sunday evening.
Gou told reporters that with the increase of demand for larger display panels, local production was a more optimal solution than shipping from China to the U.S. market.
In addition to the new display facility, Gou said that Foxconn was planning a new molding facility in the U.S., adding that the state of Pennsylvania was shaping up as a possible site following investment discussions with local officials. A representative from the Pennsylvania trade office was in attendance at Foxconn's Sunday party....MORE
