Top Chinese brands Xiaomi, Oppo, Vivo did not respond to ET’s query seeking comment.
“I think the government of India should intervene and support the smartphone industry here to arrange for logistics to ensure smooth supply of components,” said founder and chief analyst of research firm TechArc, Faisal Kawoosa.
“Otherwise, these players will be left to explore options from the open market, which will definitely push up costs of components, which anyways will not go well at this juncture when the demand is already shirking due to the prevailing Covid situation in the country,” he added.
ET had recently reported that smartphone companies are being forced to increase prices by 10-15 per cent, because a depreciating rupee and shortage of key phone parts continue to jack up the total bill of materials (BOM) for handset brands.
Cost of display panels has almost doubled in the global market, memory chipsets are seeing a 20 per cent increase in cost, battery packs prices have risen by 10 per cent and others, including camera modules and sensors, are also dearer by 5 per cent.
Any kind of logistics hurdles will further add to this pressure and manufacturers may even decide to cut down production because consumer demand is anyway waning amid lockdown, say experts.
The ban may hit Vivo the hardest as the brand is already facing an embargo by seven airlines, including global and local ones, after one its consignment caught fire at Hong Kong airport this month.
