Apple has more money than the US government

MAKER OF TOYS FOR THE WELL-HEELED Apple has more money than the US goverment, according to the latest financial figures from both.

The US Treasury has operating cash of only $73.7bn as of July 27, whereas Apple has a few billion more at $76.4bn, according to its recent financial results.

Apple's dominance is not surprising considering the popularity of its Iphone and Ipad products, along with the fact that it charges so much for its Ithings, which helps ensure its place as wealthier than the US government.

The real culprit for Apple bumping the US out of the top spot is how much the US administration spends. Currently the US spends $200bn more each month than it collects in revenue, further increasing its debt as the months fly by. Perhaps Apple can lend it some cash.

With Apple's vault of money growing by the day, there has been much speculation over what it plans to do with it all.

"Apple keeps its cards close to its chest," Daniel Ashdown, an analyst at Juniper Research, told the BBC.

Ashdown and other analysts think that Apple is building up a significant fund of money in order to go on an acquisition spree, similar to how Google operated over the last 12 months. He said that the bookstore chain Barnes & Noble, with its Nook e-reader, is a possible acquisition target, along with the movie rental web site Netflix.

As for its own products, the Iphone 5 will arrive some time later this year, most likely around September. This quick pace of releases will help ensure that Apple's products remain relevant in an increasingly competitive industry, and that the company can still roll around in cash while the US government struggles to manage its debt.

Wealth is one thing. But Apple has to keep selling its shiny products to continue making money, while the US government has the Internal Revenue Service to extract cash from its vast middle class. µ