Xiaomi, apart from being India’s largest smartphone brand, is also the market leader in the smart TV segment. The company says that local manufacturing of color televisions will witness boost due to the import restrictions introduced by the government.
Chinese smartphone maker Xiaomi has been manufacturing and selling smart TVs in India since 2018. According to a company spokesperson (via ET Telecom), 85% of the televisions sold by the brand in the country are manufactured locally.
Currently, only 35% of Mi TVs sold in India are imported. The company expects this amount to further drop, thanks to the new import policy on color television sets, which has been “amended from free to restricted” by the Directorate General of Foreign Trade (DGFT).
The change in policy is also applicable to televisions under the “other color” category, which includes the likes of LCD TVs. In the fiscal year 2020 alone, the total imports under the now restricted category accounted for $781 million. Out this amount, goods worth $428.37 million came from Vietnam, compared to $292.48 million from China.
The Indian government is trying to boost domestic manufacturing by cutting down imports on non-essential goods like televisions. The centre is expected to take a similar decision for other categories like sports goods, plastic goods, and toys.
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