Low Ching Ling, The Electric New Paper 14 Nov 07;
YOU take home bigger bucks now, thanks to a booming economy.
Your bonuses are expected to go up.
The employment situation is healthy.
But now you find a smaller bang for your buck, no thanks to inflation, the rising prices of everything from petrol to rice to bread.
Honey, you ask, who's shrinking my noodles?
Blame it on everything from the weather, to growing demand worldwide, even to the search for alternatives to oil.
And yes, the GST.
That's the big picture, said Trade and Industry Minister Lim Hng Kiang in Parliament yesterday.
Are we experiencing a perfect storm? Everything that affects food prices seems to be happening at the same time.
It has to do with the Consumer Price Index (CPI), inflationary trends worldwide, more costly food exports and the impact of the GST hike, said Mr Lim.
He was responding to questions on rising costs from MP Halimah Yacob and Non-Constituency MP Sylvia Lim.
But what does that big picture mean to the man in the street, especially the low-income worker?
Small consolation, if you ask Madam Halimah and fellow MP Inderjit Singh.
Madam Halimah, the MP for Jurong GRC, told The New Paper: 'What the Government needs to do is to better explain the reasons behind the price increases.
'Imports are expensive, so they push consumer prices up. This point has not been sufficiently reflected on the ground.'
Mr Lim did bring this up.
He said: 'Food prices have risen mainly due to dearer imports, arising from disruptions in supply in some of our major food import sources.
'Adverse weather conditions in Australia, Malaysia and Indonesia have reduced crop yield and supply, raising prices of rice and cereals, vegetables and dairy products.
'These supply disruptions have occurred against a backdrop of increased global demand for agricultural products, fuelled by risingliving standards in emerging economies and higher bio-fuel production.'
Mr Lim makes sense.
But will it matter to the little man struggling to put food on the table for his family?
As Madam Halimah pointed out, on the ground, 'people are feeling the pinch'.
Many of her constituents, including the middle-income, have griped to her about the price increases.
'When the cost of living goes up, people always want the Government to do something about it,' Madam Halimah said.
MP for Ang Mo Kio GRC Inderjit Singh shares her sentiments. 'My worry is that the Government has not factored in the real increases that are to come,' he said.
'The Government expects the situation to stabilise but business costs will continue to go up. The numbers may not be as good as (the Government) expects.'
Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong has pledged to help Singaporeans cope. Weighing on the issue even before yesterday's Parliament sitting, he said on Sunday:
'We help by making sure that the low-income are able to pay for their necessities, able to earn a living, able to have a house over their heads.'
Mr Lim elaborated yesterday that the rise in CPI was partly caused by the GST hike - and this impact will continue until June next year.
Last week, Citigroup economist Chua Hak Bin projected that inflation would hit 4 per cent or more in the first half of next year.
WHAT PRICE SUCCESS?
And, believe it or not, our strong economy is also partly to blame.
Mr Lim said: 'GDP has grown by more than 6 per cent on average since 2003. Growth has also been broad-based, across all sectors of the economy.
He said: 'Wages have also been growing, especially last year and this year.
'Against this backdrop, we should not be surprised to see inflation rise above the unusually low levels seen in recent years.'
But Mr Singh noted that wage increases still lag behind rising costs of living.
'Property prices are going up, rentals are going up. Yes, wages go up, too, but consumers now have to pay more,' he said.
'Wages are not catching up fast enough. Wages have not gone up for a long time until recently. (The budget's) really tight for the low-income group.'
What then can be done to cushion the inflationary blow to the poor?
Madam Halimah said the Government should help out the needy with its Budget surpluses next year.
In the meantime, she advises, you can help yourself by looking for cheaper food substitutes.
Also, be on guard against shopkeepers and hawkers profiteering from the situation.
But Mr Singh wants the Government to help now.
After all, the poor worry about today, tomorrow, not next month or next year.
'The Government shouldn't wait tillthe Budget in February.
'The people are feeling the impact of the price increases now.'
