Apple supplier Luxshare to control Taiwan rival’s iPhone assembly site

By Debby Wu Apple Inc.’s key Chinese partner Luxshare Precision Industry Co. is set to gain control of an iPhone assembly site run by a Taiwanese rival, as the US tech firm fosters ties with China-based suppliers to improve relations with Beijing.

Luxshare is set to buy a 62.5% stake in Pegatron Corp.’s Kunshan unit in eastern China for about 2.1 billion yuan ($300 million), according to an exchange filing by the latter on Thursday. Taipei-based Pegatron currently assembles iPhones at its Kunshan campus and another site in Shanghai.