Hanoi: Apple, the tech giant, has announced its plans to increase investment in Vietnam as its CEO, Tim Cook, reached the Southeast Asian country for a two-day visit. The California-based company released a statement saying that it would increase spending on suppliers in the country.
However, it did not provide any details about the amount it would spend or where the funds would be invested. The iPhone maker added that it spent nearly 400 trillion dong ($16 billion) since 2019 through stockpile chains in Vietnam and doubled its annual spending in the country during the same period.
Apple’s CEO stated that the company is committed to bolstering associations in Vietnam. This commitment includes working with provincial suppliers, backing clean water projects, and providing academic possibilities. Vietnam become an essential manufacturing hub for Apple, with over 150,000 Vietnamese employed by suppliers such as Luxshare, Foxconn, Compal, and GoerTek. During his visit, Cook is expected to meet with programmers, students, and content creators, as well as Apple product users.
Tim Cook arrived in Hanoi and shared photographs on the X platform. In the photos, the tech executive was seen drinking coffee with two local musicians and taking a selfie with a man at Hoan Kiem Lake in the capital. This visit by Cook comes at a time when Biden’s government is trying to boost Vietnam’s rank in the international tech supply chain as part of their measures to ease the United States’ dependency on China.
During his visit to the country in September, Biden announced the upgrade of the United States-Vietnam association to a ‘comprehensive strategic partnership,’ intending to expand trade and collaboration in crucial industries such as semiconductors.