According to analysis, it would take almost eight years to move only 10% of Apple manufacture out of China. Back in 2017, specialists discussed the enormous difficulty of moving sizable portions of Apple manufacture outside of China. Many questioned the viability of this when a report from back in 2019 said that Apple’s goal might be to relocate as much as 15–30% of its manufacture out of China. Bloomberg’s analysis has supported the statement of Apple moving out of China. Second, the Chinese government established Shenzhen as the first Special Economic Zone in the country. SEZs are designed to encourage enterprise through relaxed planning regulations and generous tax incentives – and, crucially, to facilitate foreign investment in local companies. It is this, as much as its geographical advantages, which has enabled it to grow at such a pace. Analysts claim that compared to other US tech behemoths, Apple is in a much worse situation. With China accounting for 70% of global smartphone manufacturing and leading Chinese vendors accounting for nearly half of global shipments, the region has a well-developed supply chain, which will be tough to replicate — and one Apple could lose access to if it moves,” In the last year, around a quarter of US companies with Chinese manufacturing operations transferred some output outside, but this typically only amounted to what is now known as the “China Plus One” strategy. The majority of the production is still done in China in this case, but a backup nation is also included. It will be interesting to see how Apple copes up with the landscape shift judging by its dependency on Chinese suppliers.
