The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore

[kuasimi]

The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore


http://forums.$$$$$$$$$$$$.com.sg/current-affairs-lounge-17/relentless-rising-cost-living-singapore-1708031.html


http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/08/...-in-singapore/

The relentless rising cost of living in Singapore
Posted by theonlinecitizen on August 27th, 2007

The following is a collated list of price increases which TOC could find – from various news reports, blogs, websites, forums, etc – since Jan 2006 to the present.

If we have left out any, please do let us know. If you have observed any price hikes around your neighbourhood (or anywhere else) please let us know also.

We can be reached at [email protected]

The list may not be comprehensive and any clarification is welcome.






2006

Jan 9: Pump prices at all 29 Caltex stations will go up from 11pm on Monday night. Prices will go up by four cents per litre for all three grades. (link)

Feb 13: Polytechnics and ITE increase fees by $50 and $10 respectively (link)(link)

Feb 14: NTU, NUS to raise tuition fees by 3% from next academic year. Tuition fees at both the National University of Singapore and Nanyang Technological University will go up by S$180 for the next academic year. This 3 percent increase comes on the heels of a 5 percent hike just last year. (link)

Mar 6: Expect annual tuition fee increases. Hostel fees will also go up by 10% to 11% from next academic year. (NTU) (link)

Mar 9: Retail pump prices for Synergy petrol and diesel at all Esso and Mobil service stations in Singapore were increased by 6 cents a litre. (link) (link)


June 1: NTUC Car Co-Op raises fuel surcharge: We cannot continue subsidizing the fuel price increase in the long run without compromising the quality of service. Thus, the management has decided to implement a fuel surcharge of $0.30 for every 10km free with effect from 1 June 2006. (link)

June 27: Electricity tariff to go up next quarter. Domestic users, for example, will have to pay 21.15 cents for every kWH of electricity, up from 20.49 cents currently. (link)

July 10: Comfort Delgro raises taxi fares. Besides raising the flag down fare and the peak hour surcharge from $1 to $2, ComfortDelgro is also making distance-related adjustment. (link)(link)

July: Taxi companies raise fares. (link)(link)

July 17: SMRT hikes taxi fares. (link)

Aug: SMRT, SBS apply for fare hike. (link)

Aug: NUS hikes tuition fees by between $180, $220, and $510, depending on faculty. (link)

Aug: ERP rates to go up at six gantries, mainly at CTE. (link)

Oct: Public Transport Council approves 1.7% fare increase for bus and trains. Adult EZ-link fares for buses and trains will increase by 1 to 3 cents, which amounts to an overall fare hike of 1.7 percent. (link)

Nov: SingPost revises postage rate. (link)

Nov 12: Rates for HDB rental flats pegged to income. (link)

Dec: Govt spells out fees to be frozen. (link)

2006: Loan sharks cases rise by 19%, to 10, 221 cases. (link)

2006: A total of 419 people committed suicide in 2006, up from 346 in 2003. The suicide rate per 100,000 residents - a sobering indicator in population statistics - is also on the upswing, growing from 9.3 in 2003 to 10.3 in 2006, figures from the Registry of Births and Deaths reveal. It is the fourth straight rise in as many years. (ST, Aug 13, 2007) (link)

2006: Islandwide, home rentals climbed 10 per cent in 2006. (ST, Aug 6, 2007) (link)

2006: At Alexandra Hospital, A&E charges went up from $55 to $60, as did C-class ward charges — from $21 to $23 — and subsidised specialist outpatient clinic consultation rates, from $18 to $20. (link)


http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/08/...-in-singapore/





2007


Jan: All diesel-driven vehicles to undergo smoke test. (link)

Jan: NUH’s A&E fee raised from $70 to $80. (link)

Jan: Skilled Foreign workers levy raised by $50, from $100 to $150, for all sectors. (link)(link)

Jan 26: SMU Law Course to cost more, NUS says it may increase fees too. (link)

Feb: KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital hikes ward treatment fees. (link)

Feb 14: Tax penalties from GST audits could increase. With the hike in Goods and Services Tax (GST) by two percentage points, tax analysts said tax penalties arising from businesses making mistakes in GST audits may also increase. (link)

Feb 25: Sunny Cove: Fees to Pulau Hantu Raised - As of 24th February 2007 (Saturday), the operator had increased the price for the chartering of boat to local water. With the price hike, all courses conducted at local water will be subjected to the increase from 25th February 2007 (Sunday) onwards. (link)

Feb 25: Eldershield premiums to go up by year’s end. (link)

April 1:Singapore Medical Association withdraws guidelines on fees. Doctors now have more flexibility to adjust their fees, following a decision by the Singapore Medical Association (SMA) to withdraw its guidelines on fees, as of 1 April. (link)

April 1: URA increase fees for Housing Developers’s Licence – from between $500 to $8,000. (link)

April 2: NUS revise car park charges. (link)


April 8: Means testing for hospital admission to start within a year. Subsidised patients that stay more than five days in a public hospital can expect some questions about their income. (link) (link)

April 11: Ikea to start charging customers for plastic bags. (ST, 11 April, 2007)

April 25: The SingaporeAmericanSchool increased tuition fees by between $425 and $1,000. (link)

April: Within hours of each other, the four petrol companies in Singapore - First Shell, then Singapore Petroleum Company (SPC), ExxonMobil and lastly Chevron - each revised its prices. The retail price of petrol and diesel rose by 10 cents. (Electric New Paper) (link) (link)


http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/08/...-in-singapore/


April 25: The SingaporeAmericanSchool increased tuition fees by between $425 and $1,000. (link)

April: Within hours of each other, the four petrol companies in Singapore - First Shell, then Singapore Petroleum Company (SPC), ExxonMobil and lastly Chevron - each revised its prices. The retail price of petrol and diesel rose by 10 cents. (Electric New Paper) (link) (link)





May 14: NUH increase ward charges for B2 and C-class wards by $2, increases of 4 and 8 per cent. (link)

May 23: DBS raises its e-transaction fee for initial public offering (IPO) applications. Retail investors who applied for IPO shares launched on or after that date, through the local bank’s ATMs and Internet banking, were surprised that they now have to pay $2. (link)

May 29: New fee hikes at public hospitals and polyclinics. A NEW round of fee hikes is underway at most public hospitals and some polyclinics. Subsidised patients at four public hospitals will now pay $24 or $25 for every visit to a specialist clinic, up from about $21. All 18 polyclinics, which used to charge a standard consultation fee of $8 for adults, now charge anything from $8-$8.80. (link)(link)(link)

May: From milk to Milo, cooking oil to coffee, canned foods, processed foods, wheat products and more, prices have been rising recently at supermarkets and hypermarts here. (link)(link)(link)

June 1: Prices of milk go up. The price increase for condensed milk ranged from $0.10 to $0.50, which means the prices for some brands of condensed milk have gone up by nearly 45 per cent. The price increase for evaporated milk ranged from $0.15 to $0.47, marking a percentage increase of between 18 per cent to 48 per cent. (link) (link)

July 3: Resale price index for HDB flats rise 2.9% from 3 months before. (link)



June 4: Online hosiery shop increases price. There will be a overall price increase on 4th June 2007 for all brands due to increased cost of yarns and cost of shipping. (link)





June 6: Even before the Nets fee hike kicks in, a shoe shop in Parkway Parade has already started charging customers extra to cover the increase. (link)

June 7: Wholesale price of ducks goes up. The wholesale price of ducks has increased by 20 cents a kilogram. (link)

[kuasimi]

http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/08/...-in-singapore/

June 7: Wholesale price of ducks goes up. The wholesale price of ducks has increased by 20 cents a kilogram. (link)

June 7: Eggs price increase. Eggs now cost between 17 cents and 18 cents each. (link)

June 29: Rental space rents rise. Islandwide, rents at Grade A malls have moved up by between 5-7 per cent in the first half of this year and could increase by another 5-6 per cent by end-2007, analysts said. (Business Times, June 29, 2007) (link)

June 29: Fees up by 14% on average at NUS. Two days before the higher 7-per-cent GST kicked in on July 1, prospective students of the continuing education arm of the National University of Singapore (NUS) received news that fees for many courses had gone up — by an average 14 per cent. (link)

July 1st: GST increased from 5% to 7%. (link)(link)

July 1st: THE Singapore Petroleum Company (SPC) and market leader ExxonMobil became the first companies to raise pump prices at their petrol stations following the GST hike. The two companies increased prices across the board for their three grades of petrol and diesel by 0.23 cents to 0.33 cents per litre from 7am. Caltex will be increasing its pump prices on Monday. (ST, July 1, 2007) (link) (link)

July 1st: NETS announced a price hike for its Electronic Funds Transfer Point-of-Sale (EFTPOS) and CashCard Services to between 1.5% and 1.8%. (link)(link)

July 1st: Pasir Ris – Punggol Town Council revise penalties for late payment of S&C charges to 2% and absorb 7% GST. (2004 rates) (2007 rates)

July 4:The Committee Against GST Profiteering (CAP) has found price changes to be generally moderate since the announcement of the GST increase in November 2006. (link)

July 10:ChangiGeneralHospital increases A&E charges. Following in the wake of earlier hikes by the National University Hospital and Alexandra Hospital, CGH this month increased its A&E attendance fee by $10 — or 15 per cent — to $75. For the B2 and C-class wards, the daily treatment fee went up by $1, representing a 6-to-10-per-cent increment. The daily ward charge for B2 wards also rose by $1, or 2 per cent. (link)

July 11: Starhub raise prices for cable tv packages. SCV subscribers pay $4 more across the board. (link)(link)(link)

July 11: The Committee Against GST Profiteering has received 33 complaints in the past six months about price increases, all dealing with food items. About 10 cases involve chain businesses. (ST, July 11, 2007) (link)

July 15: Electricity tariffs to be raised by almost 9% for July to September. (link)

July 18: Govt raises development charge from 50% to 70% for new building projects from 50 per cent to 70 per cent of the increase in value of the land. (link)(link)

http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/08/...-in-singapore/

July 15: Electricity tariffs to be raised by almost 9% for July to September. (link)

July 18: Govt raises development charge from 50% to 70% for new building projects from 50 per cent to 70 per cent of the increase in value of the land. (link)(link)

July 21: HDB rents at 10-year high. For the first time in recent memory, monthly rents for some HDB flats have pushed northwards of $2,000 in leases signed in the last couple of months. (ST, 21 July 2007) (link)

July 25: Hospital bills up 10% to 30% across all ward classes. (link)

July: July inflation hits 2.6%, highest in over 12 years. (link)

July (CPI): Housing costs increased 4.9 per cent because of higher housing maintenance charges, electricity tariffs and rented accommodation costs. (ST, Aug 23, 2007)(link)

July (CPI): Food prices went up by 1.4 per cent, mainly due to dearer cooked food, fresh fish, fruits, vegetables and milk powder. (link)



July (CPI): Transport and communication prices moved up by 1 per cent, reflecting mainly dearer petrol and higher car prices. (link)

July (CPI): The index for education and stationery rose by 2.1 per cent as a result of higher fees at commercial institutions and universities. (link)

July (CPI): Prices of clothing and footwear increased by 3.9 per cent. (link)

July (CPI): Health care cost rose by 2.2 per cent on account of dearer chinese herbs and higher charges for general medical consultation and dental treatment. (link)



Aug 2: SBS, SMRT seeking bus, train fare increases. If approved, transport fares could rise by up to three cents from October. (link)

Aug 2:Singapore Airlines raises fuel surcharge – from between US$2, US$5 and US$9. (link)

Aug 6:ERP rates at Orchard, YMCA and Fort Canning Tunnel to go up. From August 6, cars passing the Orchard, YMCA and Fort Canning Tunnel gantries will be charged an additional $0.50. That makes it $1 per entry. Rates for motorcycles will also double to $0.50. Goods vehicles and small buses will now be charged $1.50. Heavy goods vehicles and big buses will be charged $2. (link)

Aug 7: Student made to pay adult fare. (link)

Aug 8: 17% hike in Delifrance’s tuna croissant sandwich, from $5.05 to $5.90. (link)

Aug 10: Change of supplier sees spike in price of medicine. A 80ml bottle of Minoxi 5 from Trima Pharmaceutical used to cost $38.50. This time round, the price was $45.50 for a 60ml bottle. Going by volume, the price increase was a hefty 57.6 per cent. (ST Forum, Aug 10, 2007) (link)

Aug 13: Up to 30% levy imposed on hotel room revenues during F1 race. The Trade and Industry Ministry (MTI) has decided a levy of 30 per cent for hotels on the trackside, and 20 per cent for others. (link)


http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/08/...-in-singapore/


Aug 7: Student made to pay adult fare. (link)

Aug 8: 17% hike in Delifrance’s tuna croissant sandwich, from $5.05 to $5.90. (link)

Aug 10: Change of supplier sees spike in price of medicine. A 80ml bottle of Minoxi 5 from Trima Pharmaceutical used to cost $38.50. This time round, the price was $45.50 for a 60ml bottle. Going by volume, the price increase was a hefty 57.6 per cent. (ST Forum, Aug 10, 2007) (link)

Aug 13: Up to 30% levy imposed on hotel room revenues during F1 race. The Trade and Industry Ministry (MTI) has decided a levy of 30 per cent for hotels on the trackside, and 20 per cent for others. (link)

Aug 23: More ERP gantries, extended hours. (link)(link)

Oct: Starhub Cable TV sports channels subscribers pay $10 more. (link)

Sept 1st: New dog licensing rules. To discourage dog owners from keeping unlicensed dogs, allowing their dogs to stray or not muzzling dogs of breeds2 that are required to be muzzled in a public place (eg, the Rottweiller or Mastiff); the maximum fine for such offences has been raised from $500 to $5,000. (link)

Sept:Singapore Indian Fine Arts Society to increase fees from between $5 to $10 due to the society becoming a GST-registered entity. (link)

Oct: Public transport fare increase?

2007: HDB ups valuation and administrative fees for valuation report of flats. This is to include the new 7% GST. (link)



Quote:

Aug 24:

‘With rents rising, and some retailers not passing on the GST hike until later, we expect CPI inflation to continue to climb, probably close to 3 per cent towards year-end,’ said Citigroup economist Chua Hak Bin.

“Consumers Association of Singapore president Yeo Guat Kwang, who is also MP for Aljunied GRC, said if prices go up because of supply and demand conditions, that cannot be helped: ‘What we need to ensure is that price adjustments are fair.

‘So far, we haven’t seen a phenomenon of businesses profiteering from the GST rise,’ said Mr Yeo, who is the deputy chairman of the Committee Against GST Profiteering.

‘Most importantly, prices of basic necessities have remained stable.’

(Straits Times, Aug 24, 2007)

Other reports:

A relentless spiral by Littlespeck. (link)

CASE survey. (link)

Govt spells out fees to be frozen. (link)(link)

http://theonlinecitizen.com/2007/08/...-in-singapore/

Unconfirmed – from internet forums and blogs:

teh_si - Price of Marigold HL milk up from $4.85 to $5.25 for two (13% increase) and Milkmaid condensed milk from $1.10 to $1.60 (45% increase). Han’s restaurant increased its price for breakfast sets from $4.80 to $5.50 from May 15.

Man in the streets- I was at the roti-prata shop along jln masjid having lunch with a client, I heard the kosong roti will increase to 70 cents per piece. CASE is sleeping or closing its eyes.

nannan82:Even the chicken rice I used to eat was raised to $3 from $2.5 dollar recently at hawker centre.

ITR Guy: My fav yoghurt was selling for 2 for 1.7 to 1.8 depending on supermarket is now going for 2 ****…

Apr 30 - ERP rates to go up at 5 gantries. The rates of five Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) gantries will increase by 50 cents for all vehicle classes starting from May 7, 2007.

April 5 (ST) - Beware spike in docs’ fees. THE dumping by the Singapore Medical Association (SMA) of private doctors’ consultation fee guidelines effectively deregulates the service.

Mar 31 (ST) - Motor premiums could go up as insurers lose money.
Hike expected as half of insurers are facing losses and cannot sustain premium levels.

Jan 20 (ST) - Big surge in CBD carpark rates. Situation could get worse as some 2,000 parking lots are likely to disappear soon. Carpark owners are raising rates - driving vehicle owners in the Central Business District (CBD) up the wall. Now $160-$330, monthly season charges will go up by 20%. The occasional visitor will pay up to $4.80 an hour weekdays.

Xen, Jan 17: Ya Kun stuck a statement beside its cashier, added 20 cents to its menu, and pushed its Set A to $3.90. Even my Kosong Prata went from 50cent to 60cents, effectively a 20% increase.

May 2007:Singapore Expats Forum: Our tenancy agreement is due to expire in 2 months time. We’ve just had notification from the landlord that he wants a 30% increase in rent!! (link)

[kuasimi]

Since when Fish(Seafood) is cheaper than Chicken (Poultry) ?? Ikan Bilis ??

I find the MP's statement unbelievable.

Reminds me of a story from France.

Minister : The people are complaining they can no longer afford bread and are going hungry.

Queen: Cannot afford bread ? Eat biscuits lor .....(meaning not my fault)....lol



MP for Jurong GRC Halimah Yacob, who will ask Trade and Industry Minister Lim Hng Kiang how the Government is tackling the situation, said more can be done to educate people on eating less-costly alternatives.



'For example, the price of chicken may be rising fast, but we can encourage Singaporeans to turn to alternative sources of protein, such as fish,' she told The Straits Times yesterday.


-----------------------------------------------------------------------------


http://www.straitstimes.com/Free/Sto...ry_175390.html



Higher living costs to get airing in Parliament
Food prices, property payment scheme and MediShield on agendaBy Keith Lin




THE rising cost of living will be high on the agenda when Parliament sits on Monday.

Two MPs have tabled questions that reflect their concern on how fast-rising food prices are causing a dent in the Singaporean's wallet.

Wheat prices, for example, are at global historic highs owing to droughts in Australia and crop failures in the United States. They have, in turn, caused animal feed, and hence meat, to become more costly.

MP for Jurong GRC Halimah Yacob, who will ask Trade and Industry Minister Lim Hng Kiang how the Government is tackling the situation, said more can be done to educate people on eating less-costly alternatives.

'For example, the price of chicken may be rising fast, but we can encourage Singaporeans to turn to alternative sources of protein, such as fish,' she told The Straits Times yesterday.

Non-Constituency MP Sylvia Lim wants to know, among other things, the impact of the hike in the goods and services tax in July on rising consumer prices.

On the property market, Madam Ho Geok Choo (West Coast GRC) will ask National Development Minister Mah Bow Tan for an update on the impact of the recent withdrawal of the deferred payment scheme.

The scheme allowed home buyers to pay upfront as little as 10 per cent of a property's price, with the rest paid only when the property is ready. The Government scrapped it last month to curb speculation.

Issues on the MediShield insurance scheme are also expected to receive an airing, with three questions filed.

One is from MP for Jalan Besar GRC Denise Phua, who wants Health Minister Khaw Boon Wan to clarify whether the new move to give children automatic MediShield cover will include those with special needs.

From next month, children will start to have such cover, which is for hospital stay. Insurance premiums will be paid from their parents' Medisave fund.

'As I understand it, those born with pre-existing illnesses are not included,' Ms Phua said yesterday. 'I hope these children can enjoy the same kind of medical coverage, just like normal Singaporean children.' Five new Bills will be introduced, while another five introduced earlier are up for debate. One slated for debate is the National Registry of Diseases Bill, which calls for the setting up of a national disease database to collate data on common illnesses.





http://www.straitstimes.com/Free/Sto...ry_175390.html

[kuasimi]

http://forums.$$$$$$$$$$$$.com.sg/sh...1570470&page=7


MINISTER Mentor Lee Kuan Yew called for a sense of proportion yesterday, pointing out that the annual wage bill for ministers and all office holders is $46 million - or just 0.022 per cent of Singapore's total economic output.


It was an 'absurdity', he said, for Singaporeans to quarrel over whether ministers collectively should be paid $10 million or $20 million more, when an economy worth $210 billion was at stake

'The cure to all this talk is really a good dose of incompetent government,' he said in his first comments on impending salary increases for ministers and top civil servants. 'You get that alternative and you'll never put Singapore together again.'

Singaporeans' asset values would also disappear, he warned, adding that 'your apartment will be worth a fraction of what it is, your jobs will be in peril, your security will be at risk and our women will become maids in other people's countries'.

He said the present system of benchmarking ministers' pay to top private sector salaries was 'completely above board' and allowed the Government to recruit 'some of the very best' to lead the country

When it was put to him that people hoped for leaders who were willing to make sacrifices and who were not there for the money, he replied that these were 'admirable sentiments'. But he added that 'we live in the real world'.

His bottom line: if the Government could not pay competitive salaries, Singapore would not be able to compete and 'we're not going to live well'.


http://forums.$$$$$$$$$$$$.com.sg/sh...1570470&page=7

[winphenom]

We are already one of the costliest cities to live in, in this world. But our govt keeps saying stuffs in singapore are relatively cheap as compared to the world. I always wonder how they compare? Or are they comparing only with the less than 10 cities that are costliest than us only. Who is being transparent or are statistics by these surveys false?

[Zai]

Soon, water bills also increase.

[thedevil666]

if the person who compiles the data devotes equal effort to his work, then i don't think there are any complains about inflation and rising standard of livings. if u want to have stagnant wage and stagnant standard of living, pls emigrate out of singapore.

[squiggle]

Live below your means, PCC at home/go petain. Cut down paid sex to twice a month only.

[unicornboy]

Not only in singapore. Every other countries also experience rising cost. Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, etc etc. Third world countries. Everywhere. We just have to monitor and budget our cash flow.

I am waiting for that foul retard old man laucheebye sadfa to comment here.

[SiaSuay]

Originally Posted by unicornboy

Not only in singapore. Every other countries also experience rising cost. Malaysia, Indonesia, Philippines, etc etc. Third world countries. Everywhere. We just have to monitor and budget our cash flow.

I am waiting for that foul retard old man laucheebye sadfa to comment here.

You probably must be one of those fucking rich guys who earn more than S$5000.00 per month salary as you can afford to monitor and budget your cash flow . Most of us are drawing low salaries and cannot afford to adjust our cash flow anymore . We are already spending on bare necessities . All these price increases will further erode our ability to spend our basic neceissaties .

[nuclearkid]

Eh, fuck man. Why do I see this political shit in a sex forum? For goodness sake, don't kill my sex drive with this crap, go and rant on hwz if you need to. Right content for the right platform. Don't be a smart ass to think people appreciate this garbage on a sex forum.

[sadfa]

Originally Posted by SiaSuay

You probably must be one of those fucking rich guys who earn more than S$5000.00 per month salary as you can afford to monitor and budget your cash flow . Most of us are drawing low salaries and cannot afford to adjust our cash flow anymore . We are already spending on bare necessities . All these price increases will further erode our ability to spend our basic neceissaties .

While it's true prices of limited resources will naturally increase, fucking garbagement really do nothing to stem the rise. At the most is give gst credit n problem solved. After that they'll say don't disturb me.
______
Exchange points will rise ma

[sadfa]

Originally Posted by nuclearkid

Eh, fuck man. Why do I see this political shit in a sex forum? For goodness sake, don't kill my sex drive with this crap, go and rant on hwz if you need to. Right content for the right platform. Don't be a smart ass to think people appreciate this garbage on a sex forum.

Don't teach ppl the wrong thing La.
As if a website owned or controlled by garbagement indirectly will not co-operate when isd demand info
_____
Exchange points co-operate ma

[kuasimi]

Originally Posted by thedevil666

if the person who compiles the data devotes equal effort to his work, then i don't think there are any complains about inflation and rising standard of livings. if u want to have stagnant wage and stagnant standard of living, pls emigrate out of singapore.

Another delusional frog in the well.

You work hard and earn much is your own business. It does not mean rise in cost of living will go away or is correct.

You tighten your own belt due to rise in cost of living is your own business. It does not mean rise in cost of living will go away or is correct.

You lower your standard of living to meet the rise in cost of living is your own business. It does not mean rise in cost of living will go away or is correct.

In Singapore, the rise in cost of living is hugely cause directly or indirectly by government policies on transport, housing, education etc

Either you fight it by voting out PAP or accept it like a pet waiting for food distribution by its owner. Owner decides how much food to distribute to his pets.

You should not want Government rebates or handouts, you should want Government to decrease cost of living.

[sadfa]

Originally Posted by kuasimi

Another delusional frog in the well.

You work hard and earn much is your own business. It does not mean rise in cost of living will go away or is correct.

You tighten your own belt due to rise in cost of living is your own business. It does not mean rise in cost of living will go away or is correct.

You lower your standard of living to meet the rise in cost of living is your own business. It does not mean rise in cost of living will go away or is correct.

In Singapore, the rise in cost of living is hugely cause directly or indirectly by government policies on transport, housing, education etc

Either you fight it by voting out PAP or accept it like a pet waiting for food distribution by its owner. Owner decides how much food to distribute to his pets.

You should not want Government rebates or handouts, you should want Government to decrease cost of living.

Whilst I was reading yr post, I thought u improved until I saw yr last line.

Garbagement is really a curse on spore.
When the forefathers, the REAL FOREFATHERS Voted them in, they never imagine inviting a wolf or brutal dictatorship into their house. Now regret also too late le

Hope u realise matching my standards veryyyyyyy difficult
______
Exchange points improve ma