2011-05-08, 04:14 AM
DeanNim Wrote:I would agree to that but its been a turmoil ever since PM Lee Hsien Loong took over.... atleast thats what i think. bills have been rising, food prices, oil prices etc..
Allow me to enlighten you on the state of the economy.
Singapore is a small and open economy, highly susceptible to changes in the global market. Singapore has no natural resources, therefore it has to import nearly everything, and export to cover the costs (Export-led and Import-driven). Think about it; if a country that Singapore is importing food and fossil fuels from is experiencing inflation (i.e. it costs more for them to produce the food/excavate the fossil fuels = they have to charge more to cover the costs), they will have to charge Singapore importers more so that they can retain the same amount of profits. Obviously, Singapore importers have to charge more to retain their own profits, so the inflation is IMPORTED into Singapore and passed on to the consumers. The inflation has absolutely NOTHING to do with the PAP; if you must, blame the importers and exporters for wanting to maintain (or possibly increase) their profits.
If you still don't get it, here's a simple example:
Singapore imports mangoes from Thailand
Let's say an average Thai farmer earns SGD100 per shipping of mangoes
Due to high demand for fertiliser and insecticide in Thailand, producers of these two products decide to raise their prices.
Thai farmers growing mangoes are forced to pay more (e.g. an extra SGD20) to purchase these products to grow their crops.
Thai farmers would then earn 100 - 20 = SGD80 per shipping of mangoes
Let's say that they refuse to earn less than SGD100, so they raise their prices by 25% so that they once again earn SGD100.
The Singapore importer thus has to fork out an extra SGD20 per shipping to pay for the mangoes.
Let's say the Singapore importer earns an additional SGD100 per shipping selling mangoes to supermarkets (i.e. they charge supermarkets SGD200 per shipping)
The Singapore importer doesn't want to make less than that extra SGD100, so it charges the supermarkets an extra 25% as well (i.e. price rises from SGD200 to SGD250).
The supermarket doesn't want to make a loss either, so it passes that extra 25% to the consumers.
Summary: The farmers, importer and supermarket continue to earn the exact same amount of profit, leaving the consumers to pay an extra 25% PER MANGO (because multiplication applies to every value within a bracket, regardless).
Where on earth does the Government come into the picture here? Before you complain about GST, tell me, just how much of a loss would you make from GST? Let's say you bought an Asiasoft prepaid card for SGD10.50 when the GST was still 5%. Up to 7%, it's still just SGD10.70. It's just a FUCKING 20 BLOODY CENTS. How much of a stingy miser are you?! Once again, BLAME THE STOREKEEPER OR PRODUCER FOR NOT ABSORBING THE INCREASE IN GST, NOT THE FUCKING GOVERNMENT.
God. Seriously.
Singapore is a small and open economy, highly susceptible to changes in the global market. Singapore has no natural resources, therefore it has to import nearly everything, and export to cover the costs (Export-led and Import-driven). Think about it; if a country that Singapore is importing food and fossil fuels from is experiencing inflation (i.e. it costs more for them to produce the food/excavate the fossil fuels = they have to charge more to cover the costs), they will have to charge Singapore importers more so that they can retain the same amount of profits. Obviously, Singapore importers have to charge more to retain their own profits, so the inflation is IMPORTED into Singapore and passed on to the consumers. The inflation has absolutely NOTHING to do with the PAP; if you must, blame the importers and exporters for wanting to maintain (or possibly increase) their profits.
If you still don't get it, here's a simple example:
Singapore imports mangoes from Thailand
Let's say an average Thai farmer earns SGD100 per shipping of mangoes
Due to high demand for fertiliser and insecticide in Thailand, producers of these two products decide to raise their prices.
Thai farmers growing mangoes are forced to pay more (e.g. an extra SGD20) to purchase these products to grow their crops.
Thai farmers would then earn 100 - 20 = SGD80 per shipping of mangoes
Let's say that they refuse to earn less than SGD100, so they raise their prices by 25% so that they once again earn SGD100.
The Singapore importer thus has to fork out an extra SGD20 per shipping to pay for the mangoes.
Let's say the Singapore importer earns an additional SGD100 per shipping selling mangoes to supermarkets (i.e. they charge supermarkets SGD200 per shipping)
The Singapore importer doesn't want to make less than that extra SGD100, so it charges the supermarkets an extra 25% as well (i.e. price rises from SGD200 to SGD250).
The supermarket doesn't want to make a loss either, so it passes that extra 25% to the consumers.
Summary: The farmers, importer and supermarket continue to earn the exact same amount of profit, leaving the consumers to pay an extra 25% PER MANGO (because multiplication applies to every value within a bracket, regardless).
Where on earth does the Government come into the picture here? Before you complain about GST, tell me, just how much of a loss would you make from GST? Let's say you bought an Asiasoft prepaid card for SGD10.50 when the GST was still 5%. Up to 7%, it's still just SGD10.70. It's just a FUCKING 20 BLOODY CENTS. How much of a stingy miser are you?! Once again, BLAME THE STOREKEEPER OR PRODUCER FOR NOT ABSORBING THE INCREASE IN GST, NOT THE FUCKING GOVERNMENT.
God. Seriously.