"Somewhere the next Hyundai is out there, working from a low-cost base, " Liker says.

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Liker estimates this could make a 20-30 percent difference in profits for a company like Apple.

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Liker says another big reason Apple and other manufacturers do work in Asia is because taxes are cheaper there.

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Prof Liker said that he hoped the team's findings would lead to further research on the significance of population sex ratios.

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Apple executives may not want to admit it, but Liker says one of the biggest advantages of going overseas is that workers there are much, much cheaper.

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But, ironically, the Japanese automaker would never consider outsourcing a quality-sensitive operation like a body shop or paint shop, says Jeffrey Liker, a University of Michigan engineering professor and author of The Toyota Way.

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