I urge anyone who reads this and understands the reason why, to please post a comment and enlighten me too. Why are all imported books in South Africa always at least 15 * the dollar amount? Currently the exchange rate is $1 = R6.66. For the past year the R-$ had been between R5.50 to R6.90 to the $.

Why on earth does a book that cost $19.77 on Amazon, cost R303 in South Africa? $19.77 = R131. Even adding shipping and customs etc. should not add up to R303!!! It is a small book - not heavy, not large. How much can shipping costs be?

Look here:

Amazon (USA):
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Exclusive Books (South Africa):
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Electronic stuff that is imported usually works out never more than the $ amount * 8. So if an Apple MacBook Pro 17" costs $2800 in the states, it costs R22000 in South Africa.

My question is - why do imported books cost double that of imported electronic equipment?