Why Apple Assembles in China and not in U.S

Bangalore: Apple products, weather its iPhone, iPad, iPod or Mac all comes with an embossed line “Designed by Apple in California. Assembled in China”.  Apple has outsourced all its assembly units overseas, which has made many American wonder why can't more US-based consumer electronics and computer companies do their manufacturing work domestically which would create  American jobs and boost the struggling economy.

According to a detailed research reports done by New York Times, Apple will never have the Made in U.S.A badge due to many reasons. The report says “iPhones aren't made in America because they just can't be. The infrastructure and labor force doesn't exist at the levels necessary to support Apple's operations -- it's not even close.”

The Chinese factory where most iPhones are assembled employs 230,000 workers, which is almost three percent of the whole New York city’s entire population. This fact reveals that America doesn’t have the quantity and quality of people which Apple requires to assemble maximum number of products within the shortest period of time.

One more hindering factor which stops Apple from having manufacturing and assembly units in U.S is cost. According to the New York Times, the increased cost of paying American wages to workers would add $65 to the cost of an iPhone. The other costs, added together, probably wouldn't drive the unsubsidized price of a 16 GB iPhone 4S over US$1000. And as businesses are run for profit they will focus to reduce cost as much as possible.

Even though this American company is reaping huge financial rewards, the return of this wealth to U.S is very less due to the fact that it employees only 43,000 people in the United States which is less than fifth the number of contractor employees assembling iPhones at one Chinese factory. But one evident fact is that, the workforce Apple would have needed in America never existed to begin with, says New York Times.