| Re: Where would you Shop? Disregarding quality and any other factor other than price, I would buy from the cheapest place and for several reasons.
1. Products made overseas does not mean that the money goes to their nation. An american company based in China, using chinese workers, actually makes money for America. It's the same thing with japenese automobile makers based in America. So just because it's "made" in a certain nation doesn't imply that that nation reaps the rewards.
2. Reducing costs for Americans leaves more money in our pockets. That makes it easier to pay our bills and/or spend our money on other companies. Thus increasing GDP (a growth indicator and general number of an economy's health). And because we're spending more, the stock market also increases based on sales and GDP numbers. It is good for the overall economy.
3. Making products cheaper keeps the market competitive. That keeps prices down and supply high, which means more product for the consumer. It also helps invigorative competition to become better. That means that they have to match or get an edge on competition if they want to survive.
4. If competition can produce a similar product cheaper, that gives them a comparable advantage. It can also lead to American companies to specialize in a different product and dominate with that instead. This would increase the production possibilities frontier (PPF) and benefits all of the industry in general. |