Looking back at yesterday’s big Apple event, Bloomberg News writes that “After years of incremental refreshes, Apple Inc.’s iPhone lineup feels exciting again.” Today, India technology reporter Sankalp Phartiyal writes about another development worth noting, as many of those phones have roots in India. Plus: The East African narcotic khat gets a makeover, and the Elon, Inc., podcast discusses a $1 trillion pay package.

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When President Donald Trump announced his plans for sweeping global tariffs in April, it set many Apple Inc. customers rushing to stores to buy its phones, which are mostly made in China and seemed likely to become much more expensive. So it was notable on Tuesday when the phonemaker held its annual product release showcase and spared its fans the sticker shock. Apple’s high-end iPhone 17 Pro starts at $1,099, which is $100 more than the corresponding model from the year before. It also justifies that price by coming with double the storage. Customers looking to spend less than that will have plenty of options.

Unsurprisingly, Apple Chief Executive Officer Tim Cook made no mention of trade policy, or Trump, or China, at its event, which was dedicated as usual to celebrating the technical capabilities and elegant design of its phones, watches and earbuds. But the trade war looms over everything Apple does these days—last month it said it sees tariffs adding $1.1 billion in expenses during the current period. The lack of price increases are an indication that, for now at least, Apple has fared better than many people (including its most panicky customers) would have expected on Trump’s “Liberation Day.”

Cook, with the Apple iPhone 17 Pro (left) and iPhone Air, during an event at Apple Park campus in Cupertino, California, on Tuesday. Photographer: David Paul Morris/Bloomberg

Apple’s strategy for holding the line on prices is directly connected to another thing Cook didn’t get into on Tuesday: its yearslong effort to manufacture more of its phones in India. Five key supplier factories, including Foxconn Technology Group’s newest unit on the outskirts of Bangalore, now churn out the devices. This generation of iPhones will be the first where Apple makes every variation in India from the get-go.

This doesn’t mean Apple has succeeded in Trump-proofing its supply chain. Apple’s manufacturing operations in China are the result of decades of work—Cook’s success in overseeing that project as chief operating officer is a big reason he’s running Apple today. The company’s recent expansion in India has been remarkable, moving quickly beyond just piecing together imported parts to making and exporting components such as the iPhone’s metal chassis. But its presence is still much smaller than in China, and Beijing has ways to slow progress, as it demonstrated by pulling back hundreds of workers from Foxconn’s India factories.

Trump has also signaled that he doesn’t love Apple’s plans. “I had a little problem with Tim Cook yesterday,” he said in May. “He is building all over India. I don’t want you building in India.” The president would rather have iPhones made in large numbers in the US, an idea widely seen as unrealistic. Still, Cook has wooed Trump by committing to invest $600 billion in domestic manufacturing. (He also visited the White House, where he gave Trump a plaque with a 24-karat gold base.)

In the meantime, Trump seems less interested than any US president in recent memory in maintaining India as a friendly counterweight to China. He recently announced 50% tariffs against India, as a way to punish it for buying Russian oil. For now, Apple’s products aren’t affected by those tariffs. But they point to a souring relationship between India and the US that, if it persists, could have substantial economic consequences in both countries.

Apple’s bet on India is beginning to bear significant fruit. But with trade policy and geopolitics still very much in flux, there’s no guarantee against real supply shocks. At some point soon, Apple’s US customers could find themselves sprinting to their nearest Apple Store again for all the wrong reasons.

Bloomberg’s Mark Gurman shared exclusive insights from the Apple event in a special edition of the Power On newsletter today. Get it delivered to your inbox within minutes when you subscribe to the Tech Newsletter Bundle.

In Brief

• A judge temporarily blocked President Donald Trump from removing Federal Reserve Governor Lisa Cook. Also, the Senate Banking Committee backed the Fed governor nomination of Trump adviser Stephen Miran.
• US wholesale inflation unexpectedly declined in August for the first time in four months, adding to the case for the Federal Reserve to cut interest rates.
• Poland shot down drones that crossed into its territory during Russia's latest massive air strike on neighboring Ukraine, calling it an “act of aggression.”

The Potential for Jaba Juice

Kiriba. Photographer: Paul Stremple

When Brian Kiriba arrived back in his native Kenya after spending most of his youth abroad, he discovered his friends were into chewing khat—a mild stimulant East Africans have used for centuries. Kiriba stuffed a fistful into his mouth and hated it. The bitter leaves scratched his palate and cut his tongue, making him question why anyone would skip Nairobi’s clubs to spend their evenings in dingy rooms doing khat. Then the narcotic effect kicked in. “Suddenly, I understood,” he says. “But I knew there had to be a better way to experience that feeling.”

He’d heard of locals brewing a drink from khat, a concoction they called jaba, but it was sold only informally. Thinking there was an untapped market for a higher-quality product, Kiriba started experimenting in his kitchen. He burned out two blenders trying to process the rough leaves before he succeeded in making a decent extract; but it was so potent he and his friends threw up after tasting it. Before long, though, he hit upon a workable combination: diluting the extract with water and adding sugar, fruit juice and hibiscus for flavor.

Kiriba soon founded Handas Jaba Juice, the leader of a slew of startup producers in Kenya. His company has helped create a booming market for the stimulant drink, which is increasingly popular with well-heeled foreigners and middle-class Kenyans, though it’s out of reach for most of the working class. Kiriba charges 450 shillings ($3.48) for a half-liter bottle of standard juice, about as much as Kenya’s legal minimum daily wage. Premium offerings—cold-pressed extracts, sparkling varieties and extra-strong concentrates—go for more than twice as much. His wares have started popping up everywhere from trendy clubs in the capital to full-moon beach parties on the Swahili coast. “In the early days, we were making 50 liters and giving most of it away,” says Kiriba, 33. “There was huge, huge stigma behind it. It took a lot of convincing to get people to try it.”

Despite its ubiquity, jaba juice currently exists in a legal gray area in Kenya, Paul Stremple writes. But entrepreneurs are pushing ahead: A Traditional Narcotic Gets New Life as an Energy Drink in Kenya

On the Elon, Inc., Podcast

What do you give a man who has everything? One trillion dollars of course. The news broke Friday that despite a seemingly waning interest in making cars and his alienation of many of Tesla’s customers, CEO Elon Musk was offered a record-busting payday by the carmaker’s board. The catch? He has to help the embattled automaker meet certain goals when it comes to company value and product development.

In a new episode of Elon, Inc., host David Papadopoulos gathers Bloomberg Businessweek’s Max Chafkin and Bloomberg News Elon Musk reporter Dana Hull to discuss the pay package. Bloomberg News tech reporter Kurt Wagner also joins to discuss another investor matter: whether Tesla should invest in Musk’s artificial intelligence startup xAI.

Listen and subscribe to the podcast on Apple, Spotify, iHeart and the Bloomberg Terminal.

You can also subscribe to Everybody’s Business: Hosts Stacey Vanek Smith and Max Chafkin take a look at the week’s business news and break down what you need to know, with the help of Businessweek journalists, experts, and the people and businesses trying to navigate the economy every day. Sign up here for new episodes, available Fridays.

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