Fabric is even higher in Australia. If you look at Kiwi quilts, fabric is about 18.80 USD per meter when you convert from the 22.50 listed on their website.So we're not doing bad.
I worked in a LQS a couple of years ago, when a gal came in to buy fabric to ship to her grandmother in Japan. She said it was cheaper to buy it here and send it back than to buy it in Japan.