[Avodah] Currency Trading and Ribis

[Zev Sero]

Micha Berger wrote:
> On Mon, Jan 26, 2009 at 11:39:13AM -0500, Zev Sero wrote:
> : Harvey Benton wrote:
> : >If currencies CAN be considered as commodities, are there restrictions
> : >as to how much one can earn, buying or selling commodities?
> 
> : The only restrictions halacha imposes on profit from selling commodities
> : are on food...
> 
> And ona'as mamon. The fixed range of legal sale prices will limit profit.

I don't see how that relates.  The retailer says "this is my price".
He's not misrepresenting what the market price is.  Ona'ah, AIUI, is when
he represents that he is charging the market price, and it turns out that
he's more than 20% off.  This is more shayach to wholesalers than to
retailers, whom everyone knows add a mark-up.  And it assumes a buyer who
doesn't know the market just as well as the seller.

-- 
Zev Sero                      The trouble with socialism is that you
zev at sero.name                 eventually run out of other people’s money
                                                     - Margaret Thatcher