(image from: http://usatoday30.usatoday.com/money/industries/food/story/2012-02-12/cnbc-starbucks-secrets-of-china-success/53040820/1)
To compete with the different prices set in different countries, people have found that Starbucks is selling coffee at a much higher price in China. For a tall (12 ounce) latte, Chinese has to pay 27 RMB, which equals to $4.42, while the coffee of the same size in the US is only $3. Many of the Chinese has complained about the unreasonable price setting. Some people argue that the price should not be set too high, because many people in the society are unable to afford the price, and have a sense of unfairness for being treated unequally. However, from my perspective, I think it is reasonable for Starbucks to set the price higher in China. In China, different coffee culture is presented, since coffee is not a very normal drink. Traditionally, Chinese are more likely to drink tea instead of coffee. Therefore, it is reasonable to set price higher in China in order to balance different market in different cultures.
Citation:
http://english.cntv.cn/program/china24/20131021/101069.shtml