Why is Australia such an expensive country to live in? Why doesn't the Australian government reduce taxes & cut the general cost of living?
The simplest answer is economies of scale. Australia only has a small population, with a limited market. The perfect example is motor cars. It costs a company x amount of dollars to design a car from scratch and get it to the showroom. This money is then earned back from sales. For example, if it costs three companies one billion dollars each for example to design and build identical cars, one here in Australia with a population of 25 million and one in the US with a population of 325 million and one in India with 1.3 billion people. In the US last year they sold a total of 17.25 million cars, in Australia 1.2 million and in India 4 million. Based on our 1 billion development cost (not real figure of course) then in the US, you would only need to charge $58 to recover that billion. In India $250 and in Australia $833. As you can see, same initial cost, but very different end cost to consumer. Unfortunately this applies to any manufactured good.To offset this somewhat, Australians generally have a higher base wage. Our minimum wage is nearly $29k USD per year or nearly double that of the US at $15k. To pay that wage, business needs to charge more to cover their costs whilst still making a profit. As I said at the start, economies of scale. It applies to everything including food and infrastructure (roads, water, electricity etc.). The more you can sell, the lower your margins need to be to still make that profit to allow you to remain in business. Australia doesn’t have those economies of scale and that means we need to pay more, often for an inferior product.
Why do so many people hate Rolex and those who wear them?
Let’s look at the facts. 99% of people that are hating Rolex and those who wear them are jealous. Those are the same people that see a Rolex as a status symbol object but have not a single clue of what the actual product is.Those people are haters.What is there to hate about Rolex seriously? The fact that Rolex pioneered the first ever watch case with screw down crown, bezel, and caseback that offered water resistance and dust protection? Or the fact that they were the first brand to release a watch waterproof to 100m with the Submariner?Maybe it is the fact that Sir Edmund Hillary and Tenzing Norgay, well known for their first ascent of Mount Everest, were equipped with a Rolex watch? Or is it because the first watch to be tested at the CERN, the world’s biggest particle physics laboratory was the Rolex Milgauss? Or because Rolex is the only brand to produce watches that are guaranteed for five years with an accuracy ranging from -2 sec / +2 sec per day?I KNOW! It’s because of Roger Federer! Yeah, he’s such a bad guy! And the Rolex Hans Wilsdorf foundation, financing culture and students that can’t afford university. Horrible stuff as well! Let’s all hate on Rolex!I could go on forever like that.Of course no one has the obligation to like Rolex. But there’s nothing that could justify a feeling as strong as hate towards a brand like Rolex.It all comes down to jealousy. Jealousy from the success of Rolex and people that are able to afford one. And unfortunately, that’s just human nature.