President Donald Trump, from his first term to the present, has condemned Apple and threatened Tim Cook with the possibility of the iPhone being manufactured in the United States of America. The reality is that it’s not easy for those in Cupertino, and we’re not referring to a mere matter of words; it’s something that falls into the realm of the impossible, according to a recent article in The Financial Times.
Most of the iPhone components come from the geographically opposite side of the United States.
Tim Cook recently spoke out on the subject in an interview with Fortune 500. It was widely believed that China was popular for its factories because of its cheap labor, although that has changed over the years. The reality is that the qualities and skills of the employees, combined with the tools used and cutting-edge materials, have made it clear that China is a reliable territory. The Apple CEO is unsure that the United States can meet his requirements, given his experience with China.
While the United States is part of the map presented by the financial newspaper, it is the only Western country among the 10 countries where the majority of components are sourced. Asia dominates the list, starting with China, Japan, South Korea, Taiwan, Thailand, Vietnam, Malaysia, the Philippines, and Singapore. On the map, we can see that these countries are within a narrow range, with the United States completely outside the scope, along with other European countries such as Germany and France.
The problem comes when we test what Donald Trump has been proclaiming for years: it’s impossible for the iPhone to be manufactured in his country because there isn’t enough skilled labor. If there were, the cost of the iPhone would triple. Under current tariff conditions, most parts would become more expensive, so it would be suicidal to do so due to the high cost it would represent for Apple and its manufacturing partners.
Most of the components come from China, so there is no need to import.
Another key point within the Cupertino-based supply chain is that iPhone components are manufactured in China. There’s no need to rely on or rely on a key country far from China to achieve this. Everything happens in the same territory, although based on the graph shown above, only Japan is the territory where the most components are manufactured, and the United States is in third place, although to a lesser extent.
If Donald Trump wanted the iPhone to be manufactured in the United States, the components would have to be made there, although this is no easy task since all the experts are in China. Now you can see why Apple relies heavily on this country; not only because of the labor force, but because the components manufactured there have years of experience in both personnel and technical knowledge.
It takes a bit more time to achieve this: money for factory construction, supplies, and a large, highly skilled workforce to achieve a pace similar to what they do in China. This isn’t something that can be achieved in a single term in the American presidency.
There could be an alternative in the near future with other countries
Tim Cook has been smart and has thought about gradually shifting Apple’s production to other countries such as India, Vietnam, and Brazil. The former will be the most important for assembling models sold in the United States. India offers government incentives through cost reductions, in addition to gaining a geographic advantage. They have also found a good base of qualified engineers who can offer Apple confidence, added to the fact that India is the second-largest smartphone market in the world, with every intention of surpassing China.
According to Neil Shah, analyst and co-founder of Counterpoint Research, 16% of all iPhones will be assembled in India by 2024. This figure could rise to 20% by 2025, so Apple will be able to shift its production to other countries and reduce its dependence on China as much as possible. The United States will have to offer something much more significant than what a country like India can offer to become an iPhone manufacturer.
