During the meeting Minister Flaherty encouraged retailers to:
1) Be open about their pricing practices in terms of the US dollar so consumers will understand how the system works.
2) Ensure consumer prices reflect the new reality. There should not be large discrepancies between similar products just because they are being sold on different sides of a common border.
Retailers point out that prices cannot be reduced overnight. They say there are lag times with respect to inventory that was priced before the dollar reached par. They also point out that there are additional costs of doing business in Canada such as higher freight costs, additional costs for translation and higher brokerage tariffs. Yet some retailers have announced that they are lowering prices immediately to reflect the strength of the Canadian dollar.
"I applaud retailers that are lowering prices and passing along the savings to Canadian individuals and families," said Minister Flaherty. "If consumers don’t think they are getting a fair deal, they should compare prices and shop around."
....
[link:]http://www.fin.gc.ca/news07/07-080e.html
Stumble It!
Now that'll learn 'em!
Meanwhile, those consumers Flaherty is supposedly standing up for, get the shaft as the "new" government continues to hand out millions of corporate welfare cheques to the same companies that are keeping prices high - just like the "old" government did.
If consumers feel they are getting ripped off, then they will shop elsewhere, and retailers will have to drop prices to stay in the game. Flaherty doesn't factor in to that.
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