Apple Raises Prices on Several Products in Many Countries Amid Strong U.S. Dollar

[cycomiko]

Wrooooong...

'The parties agreed to co-operate on mechanisms to facilitate electronic commerce, not to impose customs duties on digital products and for each to apply non-discriminatory treatment to the digital products of the other.'

And before you start mentioning tax... APPLE DOESN'T PAY TAX IN AUSTRALIA!!! They use some shonky accounting method so that all sales are diverted to Ireland.

So my point stands... it's really just the price of shipping the stuff here (from China... look at a map! We're closer to China and it's cheaper to ship stuff here from China). People forget that they are a multinational and their stuff isn't made in the USA. IMO this is one of Apple's big flaws... they sell more stuff in the USA than they do in the rest of the world combined and always have.

Anyway, in short, for Australia:
- Apple pay no import duties.
- They don't pay local tax.
- Shipping is cheaper.
- There's a slight difference between the two dollars, but it's far less than the price increases that Apple has always had for foreign products.

The point <-------->you

You are pointing to the general free trade agrrement between US and Australia, not a specific item for apple.

Import duties are largely irrelevant from anywhere in the world to australia for these type of devices. Shipping is cheaper but apple do not price based upon cost, and apple does pay tax, via goods and services tax, and income tax. Apple adds a big fat buffer on most products between their US base, and all of the foreign prices that are based off that - protection against larger currency swings and ultimately. hell NZ prices for pretty much everything apple are higher than australia, and its not duty, nor taxes, nor gst diferences that are causing it. Plus we are sold by the same apple 'unit' as Australia.

 

[djgamble]

The point <-------->you

You are pointing to the general free trade agrrement [sic] between US and Australia, not a specific item for apple.

The agreement doesn't single out products... it's all electronic goods. You've lost. Just admit it and back down.

 

[djgamble]

You'd dare call me ignorant without understanding basic local taxes? ADD 10% SALES TAX IN AUSTRALIA...
and, by the way, the sales tax system varies by each of the 50 States...in New York the Apple price be +7%.

LOL 'You dare call me ignorant'... really mate! Get off your high horse. You've just called everybody ignorant and it's then like 'how dare anybody do the same'. What a farce.

Yes I do dare call you out when you're wrong. What you call 'sales tax' is called 'GST' and it's an excise... Australian states can't impose excises because s 90 of the Constitution says that all duties and excises will be uniform. This dates back to WWII when the Government chose to rein in most taxes so that they could distribute the money towards the war effort.

As I said... Apple hardly even pays tax in Australia... (the free trade agreement also means they don't pay import duties, that's just common practice because Australia and the USA are good friends, that's fine but it's totally kills all keyboard warrior assertions that there's all these hidden tariffs/customs duties we're not factoring in).
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-...ow-apple-pays-193m-tax-on-27b-revenue/5303426

Also what I'm saying about Apple opportunistically charging Australians more has been well documented over time. The page below shows what things look like even when you remove all Australian taxes (using the normal rate... which Apple refuses to pay, read into their accounting practices if you are REALLY interested in how tax works).
http://www.macstories.net/stories/quantifying-the-australian-apple-tax/

 

[xyion1]

LOL 'You dare call me ignorant'... really mate! Get off your high horse. You've just called everybody ignorant and it's then like 'how dare anybody do the same'. What a farce.

Yes I do dare call you out when you're wrong. What you call 'sales tax' is called 'GST' and it's an excise... Australian states can't impose excises because s 90 of the Constitution says that all duties and excises will be uniform. This dates back to WWII when the Government chose to rein in most taxes so that they could distribute the money towards the war effort.

As I said... Apple hardly even pays tax in Australia... (the free trade agreement also means they don't pay import duties, that's just common practice because Australia and the USA are good friends, that's fine but it's totally kills all keyboard warrior assertions that there's all these hidden tariffs/customs duties we're not factoring in).
http://www.abc.net.au/news/2014-03-...ow-apple-pays-193m-tax-on-27b-revenue/5303426

Also what I'm saying about Apple opportunistically charging Australians more has been well documented over time. The page below shows what things look like even when you remove all Australian taxes (using the normal rate... which Apple refuses to pay, read into their accounting practices if you are REALLY interested in how tax works).
http://www.macstories.net/stories/quantifying-the-australian-apple-tax/

Have you taken a look at your consumer protection laws? The US just gets the Apple One-Year Limited Warranty, the Austrialian Consumer Laws go above and beyond that, particularly the Claim Period (24months vs 12 months)

http://www.apple.com/au/legal/statutory-warranty/

Apple just bakes those costs to their pricing...don't like it, petition government to repeal the law.

Additionally, the GST or VAT or Sales Tax are taxes paid for by the CONSUMER for using the good (a use tax or excise tax) - they are NOT an income tax on Apple. Companies collect and disburse that tax on behalf of the consumer so that you don't have to.

The Goods and Services Tax (GST) in Australia is a value added tax of 10% on most goods and services sales. GST is levied on most transactions in the production process, but is refunded to all parties in the chain of production other than the final consumer.

So, even if Apple pays 0% INCOME tax in Australia, it does not excuse the consumer from paying the 10% GST, which is baked into the purchase price also.

And finally, for better or worse, Apple has decided to price their items in rough equivalent USD, adding markups where applicable for additional services it must provide (by law!) across various countries, at a minimum. Rent, Wages, etc are likely also factored in to local pricing as well.

It appears they correct pricing with product launches (so 2-3 times per year, if that) and since the USD has gotten stronger over the past year its a large unfavorable correction this go round. And, much like gas prices, it goes up faster and stays up longer than it ever goes down (if ever).

 

[FelixAng]

The agreement doesn't single out products... it's all electronic goods. You've lost. Just admit it and back down.

Sales tax in the US is not embedded in the retailer's price. Visitors to the US are often shocked when they go to a mall to purchase some clothes and see that the price is 100 USD, but then at the register the total is $107.50--this is NY example. Every state has its own sales tax---the only places in the US where you can purchase Apple products or any products for the marked price are places that don't collect sales tax---New Hampshire, Delaware, and Oregon. The other 47 states have their own state sales tax laws. The main difference to the outside world/VAT is that in the in the US retailers advertise and list for the price of the item. The sales tax (usually between 4-7.5%) is added on at checkout...the blame is not on the store but on the government. It makes sense because sales taxes vary from one state to another...in Virginia you that $999 MacBook Air will set you back $1045, while across the state border in Maryland the total cost will be $1060, but in nearby Delaware it's $999, and in New York $1075...etc.

American retailers simply price goods without sales tax because sales tax is a burden from the government, not the retailer.
Sales tax is much simpler in other countries because it's embedded in the price tag...it's also the same throughout each given country. Not the case in the US...

So, yes, there is a tiny mark-up as a buffer to various grades of currency fluctuation and local laws. As others have pointed out, warranty requirements vary in each country---(did you know in Taiwan AppStore purchases can be returned within 7 days??--however, AppStore prices are pretty standardized), the cost of renting retail space, and covering various employee benefits...

When you purchase an iPhone 6 in Australia right now the price in $999...that price INCLUDES a 10% sales tax. ...which means the phone was initially $909+GST 10%= $999 AUD. OR: 689 USD+69 USD= 758 USD...which currently equals $999 AUD.

READ THE FINE PRINT:
In Australia: "PRICES ARE INCLUSIVE OF GST"
In the US: ...way more complicated

 

[FelixAng]

Have you taken a look at your consumer protection laws? The US just gets the Apple One-Year Limited Warranty, the Austrialian Consumer Laws go above and beyond that, particularly the Claim Period (24months vs 12 months)

http://www.apple.com/au/legal/statutory-warranty/

Apple just bakes those costs to their pricing...don't like it, petition government to repeal the law.

Additionally, the GST or VAT or Sales Tax are taxes paid for by the CONSUMER for using the good (a use tax or excise tax) - they are NOT an income tax on Apple. Companies collect and disburse that tax on behalf of the consumer so that you don't have to.



So, even if Apple pays 0% INCOME tax in Australia, it does not excuse the consumer from paying the 10% GST, which is baked into the purchase price also.

And finally, for better or worse, Apple has decided to price their items in rough equivalent USD, adding markups where applicable for additional services it must provide (by law!) across various countries, at a minimum. Rent, Wages, etc are likely also factored in to local pricing as well.

It appears they correct pricing with product launches (so 2-3 times per year, if that) and since the USD has gotten stronger over the past year its a large unfavorable correction this go round. And, much like gas prices, it goes up faster and stays up longer than it ever goes down (if ever).

I have the impression some consumers outside the US think sales tax is a burden to the retailer...no, it's a burden to the consumer. The retailer has its own taxes/regulatory fees/duties to worry about. The US is a complicated market to compare...

But indeed, as Apple notes in fine print, the GST (10%) is included (or, added) in the advertised price. If Apple saved that 10% for checkout--as American retailers do---they could advertise an iPhone 6 for $909 AUD...and then add the 10% at checkout to make $999 AUD.

 

[bigpoppamac31]

All the more reason to buy an Apple refurb and save some money.

 

[Puevlo]

You wanted your consumer law protection Aussies and it cost you. Apple won't be anyone's bitch. Cough up the dough if you want your precious rights. Haha

 

[SuperNova2150]

Greedy Apple is greedy.

 

[napavalleyboi22]

This is just ridiculous in Brazil the iPhone 6 is about 2,000$ and the MacBook is 6-12 thousand dollars!!! Screw u apple