百物騰貴

Australian dollar dearest of top economies

AUSTRALIA has the third most expensive currency in the world, and the most expensive of the world's 20 largest economies, International Monetary Fund estimates reveal.

The IMF's database shows goods and services costing $US100 ($A97) to produce in the US now cost $US41 to produce in India, $US67 in China, $US105 in Germany or Britain - but $US161 in Australia.

Only Norway and Switzerland are more expensive to do business, or spend money in. Since 2002, the dollar has turned Australia from a relatively low-wage, low-cost country to a high-income, high-cost one outpacing even Japan.

The IMF publishes two measures of countries' GDP. One measures nominal output, using exchange rates to convert each country's output into US dollars, while the other measures real output, (purchasing power parity or PPP), by also comparing prices, updated from a benchmark study in the mid-2000s headed by Australia's former statistician, Dennis Trewin.

If you pay $15 in Australia to see a film that costs $1 to see in India, the nominal measure counts the Australian viewing as 15 times more valuable than the Indian one. The real measure gives both the same value.

Australia's relative prices have soared from a decade ago, when goods and services that cost $100 to produce in the US could be produced here for $73. Most of that rise is due to the rising dollar. And some reflects wages and prices rising more here than in other countries.

The high dollar has been great for Australian consumers - it allows us to take overseas holidays or buy imported goods cheaper.

It has allowed Treasurer Wayne Swan to skite that Australia is the world's 12th biggest economy. But real output can be compared only by adjusting for price levels. And on the PPP measure, over 10 years, Australia slid from 15th to 18th, between Iran and Taiwan.

The same rising dollar that makes us wealthier as consumers makes us poorer as producers. It has seen a sharp deterioration in the competitiveness of Australian producers selling in global markets.

Some countries hold down their currencies.

The IMF says Taiwan now almost equals Australia in output and GDP per head. But its currency has been held down to a third of our dollar's value, to keep its manufacturing competitive with China.
(23/10/2012 Sydney Morning Herald)

Sydney Morning Herald今天一篇新聞報導了國際貨幣基金會的研究，澳幣的對換率全世界排行第3貴，沒有做工的標少，老本越剩越少，幸好自小家貧，就算要省吃儉用，也沒有適應的問題。

悉尼的工資貴、食物貴，住在這裹的人已習慣到不吭聲的地步。貴到甚麼程度呢？舉例說到茶餐廳吃一個極普通的午餐，一碟飯加一杯茶，大概10元，折合港幣80元。朋友上星期車房電門摩打壞了，叫技工來看一下，call out fee要150元，讓他看這一眼，就仿似眼科醫生的收費。

在IMF網頁找這報告來看，可惜沒有列出香港的情況，但隨着人民幣升值及自由行所帶動，在香港生活也越來越昂貴，我也越來越不想回去。朋友的父親由印傭陪同到銅鑼灣住所樓下的馬拉食店吃飯，食店講明每位最低消費50元，世伯叫了超過百元食物，以為符合要求，埋單時被指印傭只喝了飲品，不符每位消費50元要求，要他多付差額，這店不管兩人平均吃超過50元的東西，而要每人如是。讓標少遇上，當然不會付多餘賬，拒付不構成吃覇王餐(Making off without payment contrary to S.18C Theft Ordinance Cap 210)。每位最低消費可以interpret為平均消費，未必單指個人實際消費，講到尾極其量是違約的問題，而不屬刑事案。租金高昂，店大店小一樣欺客。