Thanks for that explanation. As I understand it then, Apple are to an extent bound by international agreements as regards pricing in different countries. I was also overlooking the fact that UK prices always include a fairly high VAT (UK sales tax), whereas quoted prices in the US always add Sales Tax later, as it varies from state to state.not sure about Apple, but Dell had a huge presence in Ireland for years. even some of the US sales agreements to buy a Dell in the USA you had to agree to abide by the laws of Ireland in case of a dispute. a lot of multi-nationals are nothing more than a shell company and LLC's or subsidiaries owned by the shell company to funnel money for the greatest tax savings no matter where the item is produced. Microsoft makes you buy all their software through a subsidiary in Nevada even though they are based in Washington State.
in the USA most fortune 500 companies are all headquartered in one office building in Delaware even if no one works there