Re: Gold Soaring


"Bruce Remick" <remick@xxxxxxx> wrote in message news:YXwXi.2876>> I wonder
what a Camry costs in Japan?

Bruce


A lot more than in the USA, cars of any make etc. are much cheaper in the
USA than they are anywhere else in the world, where they are more of an
affluent luxury, and better public transportation exist. I could get
anywhere in Japan or China in public transportation, but, they like cars
and pay lots for them. BTW that is one major component that offsets the
huge losses that GM posts, their car sales in China, where they market
the Shanghai GM car, a big Buick sized automobile that is a status
symbol.

In that regard it seems odd that a Japanese citizen could, in theory, come
over here and buy a Toyota and then ship it home for less than he could
buy one in Japan.

Bruce


So not possible. For one, they drive on the opposite side of the road than
we do, so their cars are right hand drive. The shipping costs would offset
the cost savings of buying it in America and shipping to Japan(cost for
shipping a mere one). But most importantly, they have environmental laws
there that effectively prohibit imports of most non-domestically produced
automobiles. There is also a curious law that after so many kilometres have
been wracked up on an engine, it must be replaced, because it is "no longer
environmentally friendly", so they export used engines, which in the
American market are perfectly fine. My brother in law purchased one of
these engines a few years ago for his Toyota Celica.

This got griped about a lot in the US Congress back in the 1980's when our
main trade deficit issue was still Japan, but since China has eclipsed this
significantly, Japan has become a backwater. At least Japan, if an economic
foe, was always a foreign policy ally, I cannot say the same for China, they
are an economic, foreign policy, and military foe.


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