Chinese Authorities Conduct Searches on Foxconn Offices

Chinese tax authorities have conducted searches on the premises of Taiwanese company Foxconn, a state media report said on Sunday. Foxconn is a Fortune 500 company well-known for its Apple iPhone manufacturing.

Officially registered as Hon Hai Precision Industry Co., Ltd., Foxconn has offices in Guangdong and Jiangsu provinces. These two offices were raided by tax officials, according to a report in the Chinese state-run Global Times newspaper.

The Ministry of Natural Resources also inspected Foxconn factories in Henan and Hubei provinces. Thousands of Chinese workers are employed in these factories. Details about the searches have not been released, including the time of the search.

“While Taiwan-funded enterprises, including Foxconn, are sharing in the dividends from development and making remarkable progress on the mainland, they should also assume corresponding social responsibilities and play a positive role in promoting the peaceful development of cross-strait relations,” the report quoted an official as saying.

Earlier, Taiwan had launched a probe into its companies, accusing them of connections with controversial Chinese company Huawei.

In recent years, tensions between China and Taiwan have been escalating as China claims that the democratic self-governing island of Taiwan is part of its territory. The sides split in 1949 after a civil war and have no official relations, but are linked by billions of dollars in trade and investment. The Chinese Communist Party regularly flies fighter planes and bombers near Taiwan to enforce its stance that the island is obliged to unite with the mainland, by force if necessary.

The tensions have occasionally spilled over into the economic realm. For instance, China has banned imports of pineapples, grouper fish, and other agricultural products from Taiwan. However, it has largely refrained from targeting Taiwanese companies that operate on the mainland. Foxconn, which does the vast majority of its manufacturing in China, did not respond to a request for comment.

Terry Gou, the founder of Foxconn, announced in August that he would be running as a candidate in Taiwan”s presidential elections, which will be held early next year. He then resigned from his seat on the board of Foxconn. Gou is seen as a China-friendly candidate whose politics mostly align with the Kuomintang, the island”s current opposition party.

Apple has recently decided to partially leave China and has started assembling iPhones in India as disagreements between China and the US escalate. India currently accounts for 7% of total iPhone exports. Foxconn has also made new investments in India.