Those "corporate coffers" you refer to are real investments. Apple is not going to settle for getting a 0% return on the cash it holds. It has to put the money

Those "corporate coffers" you refer to are real investments. Apple is not going to settle for getting a 0% return on the cash it holds. It has to put the money somewhere. It's going to invest it in something, whether it be stocks, bonds, or a bank account of some type...all of which benefit the economy in a different way.