Report: Pegatron is the latest Apple partner to look beyond China

Pegatron currently assembles iPhones for Apple, and it does so in China. But according to a new report the company has plans to open a new production facility in Vietnam. That would mean the company joining other Apple partners in diversifying its manufacturing capabilities beyond China.

While there's no suggestion in the Bloomberg report that the new location would be used to manufacture iPhones, it does show companies continue to look beyond China for their manufacturing needs. And should Apple want iPhones to be made in Vietnam Pegasus will surely want to already have the facility needed ahead of time.

Taipei-listed Pegatron is looking for a site to build a brand new facility in the north of the country, according to people familiar with the matter who asked not to be identified discussing private plans. It already has rented a separate facility in the northern city of Haiphong, they said. Pegatron will make styluses for Samsung Electronics Co.'s smartphones there, one of the people said.

Pegatron isn't the only iPhone manufacturing partner setting up facilities in Vietnam, with Wistron and Hon Hai Precision already making moves. And AirPods are already made there thanks to GoerTek.

Pegatron joins Apple's two other iPhone assemblers -- Wistron Corp. and Hon Hai Precision Industry Co. -- in developing manufacturing facilities or building extra capacity in Vietnam. None of the three are making iPhones in Vietnam and have no imminent plans to do so. The only Apple device Pegatron makes is iPhones. GoerTek Inc. is now making AirPods in the country, while two other Apple assembly partners, Compal Electronics Inc. and Luxshare Precision Industry Co., also have a presence in Vietnam.

The trade war between the United States and China may be easing, but it's caused great unrest for companies who – like Apple – rely on China for manufacturing. Moves like these by Pegatron should ease that moving forward.