Apple Now Has More Spending Money Than USA
It's no surprise to anyone that Apple is doing well, but it may be surprising to many that the company is doing better financially than its own home country.
Latest figures from the US Treasury Department show that the country has an operating cash balance of $73.7 billion, while Apple's most recent postings show a balance of $76.4 billion.
Apple's good news comes at a critical time for the U.S.: the US House of Representatives is currently languishing over a coming vote on a bill to raise the country's debt ceiling, which will allow it to borrow more money to cover spending commitments. If the current limit of $14.3 trillion is not extended, the federal government could find itself struggling to make payments, and could possibly lose its AAA credit rating.
Latest figures from the US Treasury Department show that the country has an operating cash balance of $73.7 billion, while Apple's most recent postings show a balance of $76.4 billion.
Apple's good news comes at a critical time for the U.S.: the US House of Representatives is currently languishing over a coming vote on a bill to raise the country's debt ceiling, which will allow it to borrow more money to cover spending commitments. If the current limit of $14.3 trillion is not extended, the federal government could find itself struggling to make payments, and could possibly lose its AAA credit rating.
While the U.S. is currently spending around $200 billion more than it collects in revenue every month, Apple is making piles of money, with a net income of $7.31 billion in the last quarter of fiscal 2011, up 125% from the year before.
With such a massive reserve, speculation on what the company will do with the money is running rampant. While Apple refuses to say anything, analysts believe that the company may be saving up for strategic acquisitions of other businesses, particularly Barnes and Noble booksellers and Netflix. There are also rumors that the company may use the money to acquire patents from smaller firms to add to its devices (and use to sue competitors with) later.
With such a massive reserve, speculation on what the company will do with the money is running rampant. While Apple refuses to say anything, analysts believe that the company may be saving up for strategic acquisitions of other businesses, particularly Barnes and Noble booksellers and Netflix. There are also rumors that the company may use the money to acquire patents from smaller firms to add to its devices (and use to sue competitors with) later.
