Smartphone smuggling

The world of smart technology can be fascinating and exciting. Every year, new devices bring must-have innovations such as the ones we’ve been talking about with the imminent iPhone release. There are some who go as far as to camp outside retailers through the night, and then there are some who go even further than that.

In July, a woman was caught smuggling 102 iPhones while trying to clear customs at the airport in the Chinese city of Shenzhen. This was no mean feat; the phones were stacked four deep around In the case of Brazil, technologies such as have a 16% tariff slapped on them, in addition to federal and local taxes. Further, The Verge reports that in 2013, federal taxes were lifted on domestically manufactured smartphones, doubtlessly done with an intention to discourage competition with global tech giants like Apple and Samsung. The trade-off here is that manufacturers can see their tariffs diminish by building plants in Brazil, through which they can theoretically be reduced to zero.

Evidently, this hasn’t help the astronomical prices on imported phones fall. Even as of last year, Brazil was named the most expensive place in the world to buy a smartphone. According to The Verge, Brazilian consumers get a hold of devices from well-known brands by taking dedicated shopping vacations to the United States, or by travelling to the Tri-Border region where Argentina, Brazil, and Paraguay come together and tech traders dominate. This combination of high prices and unofficial sales points ensures that smuggling will continue in this region of the world.

the woman’s body, and officials were only tipped off once they realized the clothing she was wearing, ostensibly bulky winter clothing to disguise the bulkiness of the smuggled cargo, was abnormal for travel in the summertime. Who’d have thought? Smuggling of smartphones (and other luxury goods) is a common occurrence. Although catching someone personally smuggling so many devices is rare, the black/grey markets for them is thriving in many countries, and therefore a steady flow of product must continue. What en-imported a proble Are high tariffs smartphones Absolutely. In fact, this summ the introduction of a new tariff s smartphones, raising their price by 10%. A elsewhere in this newsletter, this tariff ca hesitation in both the shipment of smartpho sumer purchases alike. Unlike Brazil, howev counter to a prior agreement the Indian gove with ITA-1 about exempting particular electro com parts from duties. This seems to indica no relief on tariffs for manufacturers operatin that some hold this agreement responsible dia off the global manufacturing map,” as Times reports.