Apple: dollar = euro?

[McVenco]

I'm currently saving to buy a 24" iMac, which I'll buy (new) from a friend. He works at Apple and gets ~25% discount on store prices.

Just to be curious, I compared the US prices to the prices here in Holland, and apparently the prices are (almost) literally the same. A basic iMac costs 1199 dollars in the US, and 1199 Euros here in Holland (which is ~1675 dollars).

I understand the principles of profit/customs etc., but I think a 40% higher price is quite much. Even with the 25% discount I will pay the regular US price.

What could be the reason for this difference? A quick look on the different local Apple sites shows that almost all non-US prices are much higher than the domestic ones...

[McVenco]

I wouldn't indeed... But the bread thing has got to do with way more things, like local costs of grain, personell and all other kinds of bakery costs.
AFAIK, all those iMacs are made in the same factory (or few factories), with the same costs of materials, so that 40% difference has got to be some other reason.
And for as far as I checked, ALL non-US prices (except for Canada perhaps) are quite a lot higher (with the EU as maximum - even in Japan they cost 200 dollars more), and I really doubt that all the money in that percentage is for costs like transport, customs etc.