This is not entirely true. Even if you factor in the plethora of taxes Brazilians businesses and customers are "enslaved" to pay, it still should not be this abusive. In Brazil, people consider imported products (specially Apple's stuff in the electronics category) to be something of super high status, so they are willing to pay for an Apple product in 12 installments with their credit cards, money they know they shouldn't spend. Suppliers and importers are extremely aware of this Brazilian mentality and exploit it to its maximum potential. This happens across all kinds of products: all types of electronics, clothing, cars, MacDonald's, you name it. I'm not even taking price-fixing (which happens in Brazil's car industry for example) into account. A new Honda Civic in Brazil costs around $35000 USD, while the minimum wage is around $320 USD/month. Talk about inequality...