Why are car parts so expensive in Canada?

I really don’t know the answer, so I’m just going to rant here. I recently had my car checked out for two reasons: one, the front end is a little loose, and two, my A/C is leaking. They found the following problems: a loose wheel bearing, a loose tie rod end with no boot on it (?!?), and a leaky A/C condenser.

Again, I ordered my parts from RockAuto, an American retailer that ships to Canada. For prices, I’m just going to do a comparison here for the cost of parts. All brands are either the same or comparable in quality (they’re not the cheapest, but not the best). Prices rounded to the nearest dollar.

A/C condenser
Local price: $172.00
RockAuto: $115.00

Front axle hub and bearing assembly
Local price: $204.00
RockAuto: $58.00

Outer tie rod end
Local price: $78.00
RockAuto: $28.00

Total including taxes locally: $513
Total including shipping and taxes from RockAuto: $253

I can’t believe this. I checked prices at AutoZone in the US, and even AutoZone would only charge about $300 for the above parts. This is a joke. Oh well, at least I’ve got RockAuto.