Captain Obvious is on the case...it’s a business problem around the world.....not limited to the US. # 1 rule of any business is to make money....any way they can. Grocery business is easy to spot. Have 5 different packages/sizes and charge different for each so customer has a hard time deciding which is the best value.
Electronics...that’s always fun. Everyone says they will price match the competition but take a TV for example. No 2 stores carry the same model #......so they don’t have to price match anything even though it is the exact same TV.
Sure we can all list plenty of similar examples but this is not just a US business problem.