When I was living in Taiwan in the 1980s, most things I paid for were less expensive than most of the same things would have been in the United States (from the point of view of exchange rates between the two countries' currencies). Particularly notable was how inexpensive Adidas brand walking shoes were. Another peculiarity of the local economy was how little cost was added to the price of food by eating out. Yes, restaurant food was more expensive than food prepared at home, but not by nearly the same factor as restaurant food is in the United States.

But note that these comparisons are by nominal prices, at official exchange rates. Wages were also much lower in Taiwan in those days. I had a high-wage occupation (teaching English as a foreign language), so I was living large in the local economy, but even so I wasn't saving up much money for my return to the United States.

Most immigrants to the United States, from an enormous variety of countries, find that they can work fewer hours per week to buy the things they most desire than they could in the countries they left. That's why the direction of immigration flows between the United States and almost all other countries results in the United States having a net gain of population by immigration. When people compare their opportunities in the States with their opportunities in the country where they grew up, they mostly think that the United States offers a quite good trade-off. And that's not even to get into issues such as less corrupt government officials or less polluted air and water.

The more hands through which that money passes between the producer and the consumer, the more money is lost to waste.

The best research in economics results in a contrary conclusion. More trade and exchange means more efficiency all around.