On Tue, 18 Dec 2007 20:28:42 +0100, Jasper Janssen <jasper@jjanssen.org>
wrote:

>On Mon, 17 Dec 2007 18:03:29 -0800, John Schilling
><schillin@spock.usc.edu> wrote:
>>On Sun, 16 Dec 2007 14:18:00 +0100, Jasper Janssen <jasper@jjanssen.org>
>>wrote:
>
>>>Something that crossed my mind: For the Big Mac Price Index, what actually
>>>matters is not the existence of a Mc in the country, but the existence of
>>>one in the currency area. Many smaller countries (including Vatican City)
>>>don't have a currency (that's actually used) of their own (Luxembourg, San
>>>Marino, Liechtenstein, Vatican City, Andorra, Monaco in Europe, and
>>>there's a currency unity through much of formerly-french west-africa,
>>>etc).

>>Except that currency unity doesn't necessarily mean economic unity, at
>>least at the consumer-price level. Your examples were cherrypicked to
>>that end,

>My examples weren't cherrypicked at all, they're the entire row of EU
>microstates.

OK, then, parochial rather than cherrypicked. The EU does not represent
a broad enough range of economic possibility to be really useful for this
sort of thing - you have to look beyond for most of the interesting cases.
Especially the post-Euro EU.
There aren't that many countries that almost literally have


>> but at the other extreme do we really expect a Big Mac in
>>Fairbanks, Alaska to cost the same as a CONUS Big Mac just because
>>both are paid for in US dollars?

>Well, yes, actually. McDonald's prices vary within the USA?

Yes, of course. A franchise in Fairbanks would go broke trying to
match CONUS prices while paying the extra costs of e.g. shipping
supplies to the *** end of nowhere. Or, if the national chain
set prices high enough that a Fairbanks franchise could break
even, the CONUS franchises would be making enormous profits for
the few months it took their ompetitors to realize how easily
they could undersell the golden arches and capture the local market.


>>So, consumer economy, not currency area.

>It's generally close enough.

In Europe, perhaps. Even the US alone is big enough for that model
to fail.


--
*John Schilling * "Anything worth doing, *
*Member:AIAA,NRA,ACLU,SAS,LP * is worth doing for money" *
*Chief Scientist & General Partner * -13th Rule of Acquisition *
*White Elephant Research, LLC * "There is no substitute *
*John.Schilling@alumni.usc.edu * for success" *
*661-951-9107 or 661-275-6795 * -58th Rule of Acquisition *

In article <atskm31mltfidr3gbi137b9fb707ifmoso@4ax.com>,
John Schilling <schillin@spock.usc.edu> wrote:

> Yes, of course. A franchise in Fairbanks would go broke trying to
> match CONUS prices while paying the extra costs of e.g. shipping
> supplies to the *** end of nowhere. Or, if the national chain
> set prices high enough that a Fairbanks franchise could break
> even, the CONUS franchises would be making enormous profits for
> the few months it took their ompetitors to realize how easily
> they could undersell the golden arches and capture the local market.

Even in the same city. The food at the convention city is described as
'You will find the food familiar, but not the prices'. I assume the
prices at the various stadia to follow the same pattern.

On Thu, 20 Dec 2007 00:32:14 -0500, Walter Bushell <proto@oanix.com>
wrote:

>In article <atskm31mltfidr3gbi137b9fb707ifmoso@4ax.com>,
> John Schilling <schillin@spock.usc.edu> wrote:
>
>> Yes, of course. A franchise in Fairbanks would go broke trying to
>> match CONUS prices while paying the extra costs of e.g. shipping
>> supplies to the *** end of nowhere. Or, if the national chain
>> set prices high enough that a Fairbanks franchise could break
>> even, the CONUS franchises would be making enormous profits for
>> the few months it took their ompetitors to realize how easily
>> they could undersell the golden arches and capture the local market.
>
>Even in the same city. The food at the convention city is described as
>'You will find the food familiar, but not the prices'. I assume the
>prices at the various stadia to follow the same pattern.

1996 Atlanta Olympics - 20 oz bottle of Coke - $3.95. My wife ranted
through most of the third heat of the 200 m. :)

Ya gotta love captive audiences.

Regards,
Jack Tingle

In message <tu0lm3dvgmq9s8iates214i4le31boo2hf@4ax.com>, Jack Tingle
<wjtingle@hotmail.com> writes

>1996 Atlanta Olympics - 20 oz bottle of Coke - $3.95. My wife ranted
>through most of the third heat of the 200 m. :)

When I attended the summer Comiket in Tokyo Big Site, a 750ml bottle of
water from a vending machine outside the main hall complex cost 120 yen
(about a buck, US). In the hall's food area it cost 135 yen.
--
To reply, my gmail address is nojay1 Robert Sneddon

On Fri, 21 Dec 2007 15:35:02 +0000, Robert Sneddon
<fred@nospam.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>In message <tu0lm3dvgmq9s8iates214i4le31boo2hf@4ax.com>, Jack Tingle
><wjtingle@hotmail.com> writes
>
>>1996 Atlanta Olympics - 20 oz bottle of Coke - $3.95. My wife ranted
>>through most of the third heat of the 200 m. :)
>
> When I attended the summer Comiket in Tokyo Big Site, a 750ml bottle of
>water from a vending machine outside the main hall complex cost 120 yen
>(about a buck, US). In the hall's food area it cost 135 yen.

So what you're saying is, the Japanese haven't discovered gouging
convention goers yet?

Jasper

In message <q8dom31f90l549j4ugbqpkthq26gs6o2si@4ax.com>, Jasper Janssen
<jasper@jjanssen.org> writes
>On Fri, 21 Dec 2007 15:35:02 +0000, Robert Sneddon
><fred@nospam.demon.co.uk> wrote:
>>In message <tu0lm3dvgmq9s8iates214i4le31boo2hf@4ax.com>, Jack Tingle
>><wjtingle@hotmail.com> writes
>>
>>>1996 Atlanta Olympics - 20 oz bottle of Coke - $3.95. My wife ranted
>>>through most of the third heat of the 200 m. :)
>>
>> When I attended the summer Comiket in Tokyo Big Site, a 750ml bottle of
>>water from a vending machine outside the main hall complex cost 120 yen
>>(about a buck, US). In the hall's food area it cost 135 yen.
>
>So what you're saying is, the Japanese haven't discovered gouging
>convention goers yet?

The food was also reasonably priced -- beef with peppers and rice was
400 yen or a little under 4 bucks. Decent-sized portions, too. Given
that the nearest non-Big-Site eatery was a good half-kilometre outside I
reckon it wasn't bad. There were queues to get served, not surprising
with 150,000 people attending that day but it didn't take too long.
Compared to the two hours plus I spent queuing to get into Comiket (in
40C temperatures) the wait at the restaurant was nothing.
--
To reply, my gmail address is nojay1 Robert Sneddon