DRUGS: PRICING POWDER

THE street price of cocaine varies hugely across the world. No
surprise that it is cheapest in Colombia, the world's biggest producer
of coca: at $2, a gram costs less than a Big Mac. Geography is an
obvious price factor. The farther away a country from the main
producers in South and Central America, and the more isolated it is,
the higher the cost to traffick there. In far-flung New Zealand, a
gram costs a wallet-busting $714.30. But there are some pricing
anomalies. Although the street price in Japan is several times higher
than in Israel, Germany and Britain, the wholesale price in the
countries is similar, around $46.40. In Canada the wholesale price is
50% more than in America, but Canadians pay 40% less on the street. It
could be that policing is more zealous in some countries, or that
there is less competition among suppliers.