To: SunkenCiv
I don’t know “The Schwab Network” but this author below worked for Wall Street Journal and in China. He explains very clearly how ONLY China and the CCP could lure Apple to China to make its phones there.
It’s not at all about cheap labor, which perhaps was an initial attraction. Simply put - China has nearly the entire supply chain, machining and assembly to make the iPhone. Replicating that elsewhere is nearly impossible.
It was really a partnership between Apple, Chinese local governments, and the CCP. Thus it will be nearly impossible
The author has been on a lot of podcasts. Very enlightening
https://www.amazon.com/Apple-China-Capture-Greatest-Company/dp/1668053373
14 posted on
09/13/2025 3:00:27 PM PDT by
PGR88
To: PGR88
Simply put - China has nearly the entire supply chain, machining and assembly to make the iPhone. Replicating that elsewhere is nearly impossible.
The major cost of the iPhone, after R & D (which we still do here), is in the chips and the screen. Free China, Taiwan, makes those, and that is a de facto different entity. The LED/OLED portion of the screen is made by frenemy Samsung and LG in S Korea. The glass portion by Corning in Kentucky.
Vietnam is starting to compete a bit on the logistics side of things. The U.S. could do logistics on a large scale not so very long ago, and could again in short order. Red China didn't become a juggernaut until AFTER WTO recognition and Permanent MFN/Normal status with the U.S. during George the Younger and Bill Clinton. IT/Phone Companies like Apple, Dell (PCs Limited), Fujitsu, NEC, Toshiba, HP, IBM, Motorola, Nokia all flourished during this time. (Hong Kong was part of that, but Red China did NOT make Hong Kong what it is.)
I am not saying that there would be no added cost to making the phones here, just that it would not be a 350% penalty to have them made here with mostly U.S. parts. The chip capacity is coming on board (and never was a Red China thing). In fact, the company I work for has manufacturing in the U.S. northeast, Europe, Japan, India, Malaysia, S. Korea, Philippines, with very little in Red China.
Having the whole thing done in Red China, (which it isn't) would be foolish, as a situation there (including natural disaster), would take the non-Communist China corporation down. Of course, there is the non-trivial risk of IP theft. It is too expensive long term to rely on Red China for manufacturing.
26 posted on
09/13/2025 5:46:22 PM PDT by
Dr. Sivana
("Whatsoever he shall say to you, do ye." (John 2:5))
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