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Hi Craig, I have no complaints with people buying OS, hell if the product is heaps cheaper than here, say no more.
My argument is that these OS sellers have an unfair advantage because of the useless import taxes.
PS, I also agree that we are not going to see am improvement in the way governments squander the money they have if we do get fair import taxes, but proper import taxes would give Australian businesses a much fairer chance at competing on a level playing field.
Totally agree with that statement and is exactly what I have been saying!Quote:
Originally Posted by Slunnie
The GST should be levied. It's about a fair go for all. It won't help local retailers though, paying 10% extra on the 50% saving you're making is peanuts.
It's funny though, a few years ago it was brave to buy online. You're still not covered by OZ consumer affairs legislation (from an OS retailer) so there is more risk, but it's mostly worth it especially if you know what you are looking for and the freight is ok.
i get so sick of hearing the general (uninformed) public ranting about how much profit business make. i am yet to work in a retail outlet ( ion 20 years of retail) that makes more than 15-20% net profit .
it would be really interesting if ppl stopped asuming local companies are making such a huge profit and actually look up some figures themselves.
in less than 2 minutes on harvey norman website and i found the 2010 annual report. seems there's several parts to the company, not sure how its all managed.
now i am no accountant, but to me, this doesnt look like a huge margin (quote taken directly from report) http://www.harveynormanholdings.com....ual_Report.pdf
" The franchising operations margin was 6.1% for the year ended 30 June 2010 compared to 6.1% for the year ended 30 June 2009. "
yes theres a huge turnover so big dollar value net profit, but where's the huge margins everyone is always whining about ?
actually, on further investigation of said report, it would appear the make more profit out of property dealings than by retailing. that doesn't surprise me really.
further reading just confused me, so ffo to bed now :)
Quote:
Originally Posted by drivesafe
A 10% GST pales into insignificance in terms of an unfair advantage when you consider the postage cost from OS easily negates that many times over.
Just on the issue of margins and mark-ups etc., a little birdy tells me that Toyota were intending to bring the new FJ out at approx $60k. The Australian retailers said "No, bad idea, try $45k." All out of nothing. No change to design. No cutting of corners or removal of standard spec fittings. If this is true there's an easy $15k they were standing to make for absolutley nothing. I don't know what that will now leave them, but the fact that they're looking at doing such an easy backflip makes me wonder what their margins are elsewhere.
A VAT is a requirement for being a member country of the European Union. Rates are typically 20-25%. This makes it worthwhile chasing and collecting, and employing a large bureaucracy to aid compliance. This has also created a thriving black economy that functions perfectly well outside the official one avoiding the VAT.Quote:
Originally Posted by drivesafe
One Euro country bunged their tax on to start at 15%, then upped it a few years later to 20% which produced civil unrest and almost changed the government. The neighbouring country, when it joined, had taken notice
and bunged their tax on at 25% to start thus avoiding the unpleasant task of increasing it later.
Can you tell me that developing countries in Africa and even places like Afghanistan would pay $60K for a L/C?Quote:
Originally Posted by jc109
Prices are levied at what the market can bear.
On the issue of paying GST on O/S purchases, even though our dollar had risen from under 70% to parity with the US$ we have not seen a similar fall in prices at the cash register for O/S made goods. As has been the theme in many forums on this topic, I would be happy to buy and pay GST from local retailers if the price was even close to the landed price of O/S purchases. e.g a mirror arm for a Defender is about $500 in Australia and about $100 from the UK - even with shipping and GST I'd still save over $300.
Interesting collection of rants raves and opinions.
At the end of the day the deciding factor is what ends up in our pockets.
Not many of us like to pay a huge price for anything that they can get for a lot less by shopping around. if that involves going overseas well so be it. We live in a free country the choice is ours, if Free Trade Agreements work in our benefit so be it. I do not think its an unfair advantage we as consumers cannot get the tax reliefs that retailers can use.
So many products are made out of Australia, generally in the big C or big I. There production costs are low some of the factories in one of the countries are owned by companies from here. With the Cheaper manufacturing costs to make it off shore, how does that help our local economy?? Retail sector wages are in the dark ages, a junior is anyone under 21.
Those of you in small business are feeling the pinch and crunch when it comes to local fees and taxes and general operating costs. Competition from overseas sellers and available products in some cases would make it very difficult in some instances to operate effectively.
I do not think the average australian would consider that part of the paid GST would fund hospitals and roads. Is it not true that the federal government over the years had withheld some of that money. Inept state governemtns were reluctant to spend anything and then created the turmoil we now see especially in NSW. ( I know they didn;t have the money, it was all spent on the sydney roads.)
thats enough of my part-take on things.
john
ps. in this day and age we all shop around and luckily now there are not too many borders stopping us.
pss good point diana even the mob I work for that gets 80% of the products from over there has been slipping the prices up.
I saw a letter to the editor in The Australian. They wanted to know does anybody sell petrol on the internet.:o