Chapter 679

The cost of living across districts only varied when it came to hard assets like housing, cars, stocks, and investment funds. When it came to everyday goods, the prices were pretty much the same. Take something like a frying pan, for example. The exact same model sold for 30 dollars in North District, and cost the same here in the South District. If prices for consumables varied too much, it could throw an entire city's economy into chaos. If everyday goods were significantly cheaper in South District, people would just travel farther to shop here and avoid spending in North District altogether. Worse yet, some might even start buying in bulk down here and reselling in North District for a profit, totally messing up the market equilibrium. So, while there was a price gap across regions in the country, that kind of discrepancy just didn't happen inside a city. This wholesale market we were in? The prices were nearly identical to the more budget-friendly markets in North District.