Shopping still cheaper stateside, despite soaring loonie

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VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Things are cheaper in the States, for everything from iPods and books to cars. That is still the frank reality for Canadians, despite a soaring loonie.

We’ve been griping about the price gap ever since our dollar first met theirs. Nearly four years later, a new BMO report previewed in the Toronto Star finds we pay 28 per cent more for DVDs. The iPod Touch costs us 24 per cent more, and for runners, we pay 48 per cent more.

“I think it’s the price of being Canadian,” says another. “And we’re complacent! Americans won’t pay more because they feel it’s their right not to pay more. Canadians? We’re too nice.”

Many people tell us they’ve been doing a lot of shopping online and across the border.

“I think we should be paying, if our dollar is the same, the same price,” says another. “It’s fair, I think.”

Canadian retailers say they have fixed costs like rent and wages that don’t change with currency fluctuations. They pay higher taxes and more for things to start out.

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