APPLE STEPS CLOSER TO OPENING STORES IN INDIA

It’s hard to imagine a retail event larger than the first Bay Area Dunkin’ Donuts shop opening up in Walnut Creek this Wednesday, but as of Monday, Apple is one step closer to bringing its retail stores to India.

The government in Mumbai unveiled new regulations aimed at making it easier for foreign companies to do business in India, with the biggest impact being on the amount of components a retailer has to use from local sources. India requires retailers to use local sources for at least 30 percent of their products’ components. The new regulations say that so-called single-brand retailers, such as Apple, will get a three-year window to do business before they have to implement the local-source requirement. Retailers can also get a five-year extension on the regulations if their products have “‘state-of-art’ and ‘cutting edge’ technology.”

Apple has been trying to open up its own stores in India — and also sell discountpriced refurbished iPhones in the country — but has been thwarted by the country’s stringent laws aimed at benefiting local products and manufacturers. Apple is estimated to have only about 2 percent of the Indian market for smartphones. The majority of smartphones in India are priced below $150, and the Indian government fears that low-priced iPhones would decimate the market for India’s smartphone makers.