Two products I can compare are Asics running shoes, and Genuine Epson printer inks.
Running Shoes are $260 inc GST here, yet $130 all taxes paid in a regular store transaction in the US. Printer Inks $360 here inc GST Same product in the US $220 regular price. Push bike parts are 1/2 to 1/3 less from the UK or US incl freight.
None of these products have been reduced by retailers to reflect the Australian dollar value.
**Indeed, though blaming retailers (only) may not be apportioning the blame appropriately. Importers have a slice of the pie too.
-- Trevor Wilson www.rageaudio.com.au
Right, but watch the prices go up if the Australian dollar starts to fall!
MrT.
Same thing with soccer gear.
I worked with a guy and he got all his kids soccer gear from UK.
He reconned it was half the price of the exact same thing here.
Ok so bypassing the local people cuts a huge mark-up off Couple of days ago the wife said she wanted a cloths steamer I bought one locally at ebay price but had to drive 10k for it , the local vacuum shop was 46% more for the same item which is puzzling maybe the courier charges a lot ?
-- X-No-Archive: Yes
You'd get a D- for offering this as a business management assignment. Don't you think that proprietors have been round this loop many times in working out a business model that will work? Some businesses bust a gut to support local industry, other ones don't give a rats. Every one of them could provide reasons why they operate the way they do.
We have a retailer, who imports, increase his prices about 3 years ago when the dollar was low, never seen him reduce the stuff since. I have kept the catalogues over a few years so I'm able to compare them.
When the GST was introduced companies had a price increase to cover there "losses" prior to it being introduced.
We had a price increase in electricity at the end of last year, prior to, what was thought, the introduction of a carbon tax so it would not show up as an added tax.
The ones that don't give a rats seem to outnumber the others by far IME. And if THEY don't support local industry, then it's simply hypocritical to whinge about consumers not doing so. Of course that's nothing new!
Frankly I'm happy to buy imported goods since they buy our minerals and primary produce. And I'm happier to buy from a local shop than import from overseas, IF their greed is not TOO excessive. Paying double what you can import it for though is excessive IMO, and far too common.
MrT.
Nope, we have price increases on electricity EVERY year, and it has nothing to do with a carbon tax. The price WILL increase again (and show up as an added tax) whenever a carbon tax is introduced. Shame we couldn't spend $43Billion on a national alternative energy scheme rather than an NBN though. I won't be paying $60 a month connection fee as is proposed, and I'm sure others will just switch to wireless phone and broadband as well. Another white elephant at taxpayer expense. Why the hell do we privatise everything AND still expect the taxpayer to foot the infrastructure costs?
MrT.
We had a 25% increase end of last year
r
ng
Why bother ? Our energy systems work fine as they are right now. Got enough coal to last for centuries, one of the cheapest ways to make electricity If there isn't enough capacity, then build more power stations.
The NBN will no doubt be "censorship ready", and probably able to track everything people do online much more efficiently than what we have now (which works fine for the majority of people). Find the troublemakers, send the stazi around to deal with them ;)
As for the electricity bills going up again, already happening in QLD
I dont know about capital cities, but wireless is too expensive if you want to download files, or download any significant amount of data (if you are in Australia that is).
You really need fixed connection if you want to do that.
We are made to pay for this stuff that because these interests that end up with these assets on the cheap when its 'privatised" own and control both major parties via donations, media and other influence., which is why most decisions are made for these people, not for the average person. The individual is just there to foot the bill for all these grubs.
And
most people are hypocrites.
mAgree
How many Australian Manufactured Items does Harvey Norman stores stock in support Australian Industry?
In the type of retail he is in, how many such articles are made in Australia?
>
And you'll get another one next year.
MrT.
Exactly, they don't "work fine as they are" because they have not increased generating capacity to meet demand. With global emmission targets, continuing to build coal fired power stations is not gonna happen. Carbon capture and seqestration is only a pipe dream, and it would probably be cheaper to invest in solar, wind, tidal, geothermal, or even nuclear. Let's face it, it's a lot easier to live without high speed internet than electricity!
As everywhere, and will continue to outpace inflation (in fact will help drive inflation) by a considerable margin, for a long time to come.
Stop downloading movies and you are fine. I just borrow DVD's from the council library instead, since I can't avoid council rates.
Exactly my point.
MrT.
Pretty close to zero I would think from my visits.
MrT.
Not many, but that's partly because of shops like his stocking the cheaper imports for decades. Not that I'd want to pay 3 or 4 times as much for electrical items like was the case in the 60's when we did have a manufacturing industry. In any case you can't have it both ways unless you are a rich hypocritical asshole like Gerry Harvey!
MrT.
A fair bit of the furniture seems still to be made in Oz.
**********************************
Remember this?
Another weeping, "success" crazed billionaire fears becoming lazy, and being down to his last billion dollars as he pleads for cheap labour: "I've got horse studs and it's difficult to get staff."
BILLIONAIRE retailer Gerry Harvey says Australia needs a two-tier wage system to allow employers to pay foreign guest workers less than locals.
The Harvey Norman boss said Australia's prosperity was creating a labour shortage and endangering the nation's competitiveness. He said a growing number of Australian manufacturers were moving overseas, where cheap labour was plentiful.
He called on the Federal Government to allow foreign workers on fixed visas to form a second tier to the labour market. "Australia doesn't have cheap labour. Many overseas workers would be prepared to move here for a much better life and half the money Australians earn," he said.
"When you get unemployment down to four per cent, to three per cent, to two per cent, business can't get the labour. I've got horse studs and it's difficult to get staff. Workers would rather work in the mines where they get paid twice as much. Fruit-picking companies are relying on backpackers."
Mr Harvey said both major parties needed to open the gates to migrants.
"The US can draw on a lot of cheap labour from Mexico and South America," he said. "People from those countries move to the US looking for a better life. European countries can draw on cheap labour from eastern Europe."
"The danger of being too prosperous is that it can come back to bite you - you can become too lazy and other nations work harder and overtake you."
"What I'm saying is not politically correct. You won't get politicians saying what I'm saying, but privately they know this sort of thing is a reality in the future."
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