In 2009, Mercer ranked Singapore as the 10th costliest countries in the world (see here).
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 theonlinecitizen@gmail.com
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)
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 Singapore American School 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 12: Inflation heads for a higher plane. For now, the major public concern is a rise in the Goods and Services Tax (GST) from 5% to 7% in July, which is likely to exacerbate the series of worrying price increases over the past year. (Littlespeck)
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)
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)
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 1st: Cigarette prices up as bar ban kicks in. Tobacco companies raised the prices of popular brands by an average of 40 cents. This brought the price of a 20-stick pack of Marlboro or Dunhill cigarettes, for example, to $11.60. (AsiaOne)
July 3: Resale price index for HDB flats rise 2.9% from 3 months before. (link)
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: Changi General Hospital 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)
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 7: Cost of living in S’pore getting higher compared to neighbours. Singapore retains its 9th position out of 41 Asian locations as the most costly city. (CNA)
Aug 7: Car insurance premiums likely to increase. Higher premium rates for car insurance look almost certain, after the motor sector suffered a second consecutive quarter of losses. Rises could be between 5 and 10 per cent, according to one insurer, as the industry battles higher claims. (AsiaOne, ST, Aug 7, 2007)
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)
Aug 24: By Aug 24, the Committee Against GST Profiteering had received 115 complaints on alleged GST profiteering. In the first two weeks of July, after the GST increase came into effect, 49 complaints were received, surpassing the 30 complaints received in May. (ST, Aug 29, 2007)
Aug 27: Singapore raises 2007 inflation forecast to 1-2 per cent. Singapore‘s central bank confirmed an apparent off-the-cuff remark by Trade and Industry Minister Lim Hng Kiang in parliament that inflation would come in at 1-2 percent this year, above the government’s previous forecast of 0.5-1.5 percent. (Reuters)
Aug 29: Middle-aged suicide rate up. In 2003, there were 14 suicides (of men in their 40s and 50s) per 100,000. In 2006, it went up to 19 per 100,000. For women, there were 8 per 100,000. In 2006, it went up to 13 per 100,000. (TODAY, Aug 29, 2007) (link)
Aug 29: Storage boom as rents rise. Companies which provide self-storage facilities are reporting a rise in rentals by foreigners as rising rental prices force more of them to downsize. (The Electric New Paper, Aug 29, 2007) (link)
Aug 31: Government raises property development charges. For non-landed residential use, the charge was raised by an average of 58 percent with prime areas like Cantonment Road seeing the biggest jump of 112 percent. Areas seeing the highest increase (of over 100 percent) include Telok Ayer, Maxwell, Shenton, Anson and South Bridge Road. (CNA)
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 5: Esso won’t go public on fuel price changes. IF YOU are an Esso customer, you will not know if the price of your fuel has changed until you drive right up to a pump. ExxonMobil – the biggest player here with 74 out of the total of about 200 stations – has adopted a new policy against revealing changes in pump prices to the media. Neither does it display prices at station entrances. (Straits Times, Sept 5, 2007)
Sept 11: Adult EZ-link fares for buses upped from October. From 1 October, adult EZ-link fares for buses will increase by between one and two cents. But there will be no increase for train fares. (CNA)
Sept 12: Special needs school raise fees by 100%. I was shocked to receive a letter in July stating that school fees would increase by 100 per cent from this month. No other institution – even private schools – operates in this manner by increasing its fees by 100 per cent. (Letter to ST forum)
Sept 13: Employers to buy medical insurance for foreign workers. From January next year (2008), employers will have to buy and maintain insurance for the medical expenses of all foreign workers on Work Permit or S Pass. (CNA)
Sept 25: Electricity tariffs to go up because of higher oil prices. Barely 2 months after the increase of 9% in July, electricity tariffs will again go up later this year because of higher oil prices. SP Services said electricity tariffs will be raised by an average of 0.86 cent, or 4.29 percent, per kilowatt-hour, for the three months from October to December. (CNA)
Sept 25: Cosmetics costing more? Taking a hit from the Goods and Services Tax hike, prices of consumer products in Singapore grew at a pace not seen since 1994. (TODAY)
Sept 27: Gardenia loaf of bread cost 5% more in three months. “Yesterday we found out that its price has soared to $2. If you work that out against the original $1.90, it means that the total price increased is 5.3 per cent in three months.” (Letter to ST forum page.)
Sept 29: Why higher fees for vacant flat? “MY LATE grandfather, who was the sole owner and occupier of a three-room HDB flat, had been paying $38 a month in conservancy fees to the town council. His estate now has to pay $55 a month (a 45 per cent increase) for the vacant flat, the reason being that the $38 concessionary charge no longer applies as it is now unoccupied.” (Letter to ST Forum Page)(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: Starhub Cable TV sports channels subscribers pay $10 more. (link)
Oct 1: Public transport fare increase takes effect.
Oct 1: Private home prices in Q3 up by 8%: URA flash estimate. The prices of private residential property in Singapore increased by eight per cent in the third quarter of this year.. (CNA)
Oct 1: HDB resale prices up by 6.5% in Q3: HDB’s flash estimate. Public housing resale prices went up by 6.5 percent in the third quarter of this year, compared to the previous three months. (CNA)
Oct 1: Petrol, diesel price up 3-5 cents. At 10am, Caltex increased its petrol and diesel prices by 3 cents a litre, while Shell upped its rates by 5 cents a litre. By 3pm, Singapore Petroleum Co followed suit by raising its pump rates by 5 cents a litre. The increase is the fifth upward revision since July, as crude oil prices hover at record levels above US$80 a barrel. (AsiaOne)
Oct 1: Hotel room rates expected to go up by 25% in Q4. Hotel room rates in Singapore in the fourth quarter are expected to be 25 per cent higher than that of last year, according to industry players. (CNA)
Oct 3: The price of chickens has risen by 20 to 50 per cent here since last week, caused by the wholesale price hike from Malaysia, among the factors, according to media reports. (Bernama)
Oct 4: Queensway Shopping Centre, Sim Lim Square and sky-high rentals in Singapore. As the leases are expiring about now, get ready for a radical change in Sim Lim Square, the highest�rentals for the shops selling the lowest margin products ever. (C Net Asia)
Oct 19: SIA ups fuel surcharge by between $3 and $9. The new charges, which are between $3 and nearly $9 more than the current surcharges, will apply to tickets issued from Oct 24 and to both SIA and SilkAir flights. (TODAY)
Oct 20: Price of flour up 30%. The price of flour has increased again, but this time it has gone up by thirty percent. This is the biggest ever hike, according to industry watchers. From January, it will cost 20 cents more to buy a loaf of bread. (CNA)
Oct 22: Caltex petrol, diesel prices up. AMERICAN oil company Chevron raised pump prices of its Caltex petrol and diesel by five cents a litre on Monday – the sixth increase since July and the second in about a fortnight. The others – Shell, ExxonMobil and Singapore Petroleum – are likely to do likewise in the coming days. Chevron’s move brings its pump prices to record levels. (Straits Times)
Oct 26: Private home prices up 8.3% in Q3. Singapore private home prices rose 8.3 percent between July and September to their highest level in a decade. (Asia One)
Oct 27: Prices of HDB resale flats keep accelerating. ‘As at end-September, the HDB resale price index has increased by about 11 per cent since the start of the year,’ the HDB said. For five-room flats, the median resale price in Queenstown is the highest at $603,000, followed by Marine Parade at $560,000 and Bukit Merah at $530,000. (Straits Times)
Oct 28: Singapore raises noodle prices. Starting Nov. 1, the price of noodles in Singapore will increase 20 percent to 30 per cent, the Singapore Noodles Manufacturers’ Association announced on Sunday. (AHN News)
Oct 30: ERP rates going up again for third time this year. Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) rates are going up again for the third time this year. There will also be new gantries erected. From November 5, motorists will pay $3.50 from 7:30am to 8:00am. The amount charged goes up to $5.00 between 8:30am and 9:00am. This is a $1.50 increase in the 8:30am to 9:00am period since February this year. (CNA)
Oct 30: 100 bakeries to raise bread prices by up to 20%. OVER 100 bakeries have indicated that they will be raising bread prices by up to 20 per cent, following a jump in flour prices. (Straits Times)
Nov 2: Expect steep hikes in tyre, wheel and battery prices. BESIDES record fuel prices and higher Electronic Road Pricing rates, motorists must prepare to pay more for batteries, tyres and wheels. The Singapore Motor Tyre Dealers Association is preparing to announce sizeable price hikes, with battery prices going up by as much as 50 to 70 per cent. Tyre prices will go up by 20 to 30 per cent, and wheels by 10 to 20 per cent, the association’s assistant secretary, Mr Robert Tng, told The Straits Times. (Straits Times)
Nov 5: A TRIP to the supermarket will cost more now than it did at the beginning of the year. A Straits Times check on a random basket of basic goods sold at supermarkets here revealed price increases in almost every category, from fresh chicken to coffee and milk formula. (Straits Times)
Nov 5: Prices for Singapore Petroleum Company Limited (SPC) motor gasoline across all three grades and diesel will be increased by seven cents per litre. (SPC)
Nov 8: Raffles Place retailers face space crunch, soaring rents. A recent study by property consultant Cushman & Wakefield found rent rises of up to 24 per cent over the past two years in the area. (Straits Times)
Nov 23: Singapore‘s October CPI up 3.6% on-year, 1.3% on-month. Singapore‘s October consumer prices rose 3.6 percent from a year earlier after an increase in the Goods and Services Tax (GST), government data showed on Friday. (CNA)
Nov 29: Pump prices increase by 5 cents. All four oil companies — Shell, Caltex, ExxonMobil and Singapore Petroleum Company (SPC) — have increased pump prices for petrol and diesel by five cents. In the past 11 months, the price of petrol has shot up nine times and twice just in this month alone. (CNA)
Nov 29: Second Link toll charges to go up next year. VEHICLES from Singapore crossing into Johor via the Second Link Expressway will have to pay higher tolls from Jan 1, the Malaysian government announced yesterday. Passenger cars using the Second Link route will have to pay RM10.80 (S$4.60) next year, compared with RM8.40 now. (Asia One)
Dec 9: Price of luncheon meat soar, from $1 to as high as $3. Prices of luncheon meat have been on the rise since August when the Agri-Food and Veterinary Authority (AVA) rejected and destroyed a consignment of canned pork products from two food processing plants in China. (New Paper)
Dec 10: ComfortDelgro raises taxi fares. Commuters will pay between 18 per cent and 49 per cent more for a taxi ride home from the city from 5pm to midnight. (Straits Times) (CNA)
Dec 11: SCHOOL bus fares will go up by at least $5 to $10 in January, sparked by the increase in diesel prices in recent months. (Straits Times)
Dec 14: Singapore‘s second-largest taxi operator SMRT will be raising its fares from next Friday, December 21. The changes are in line with the adjustments made by market leader ComfortDelGro which will be increasing fares from December 17. (CNA)
Dec 14: Hike in POSB coins charge excessive. “IN THE past, whenever I made a deposit or withdrawal in coins, I paid $5 in service charge for every $500. Now, I have to pay $15 for every $500. So if I changed $1,000 into coins, I would lose $30.” (ST Forum Page)
Dec 14: Adjustment rate for housing loan changed unilaterally. “This unilateral change in adjustment rate is an increase in effective interest on the loan, and it is done without changing the loan interest rates. Is it fair for banks to offer adjustment rates as a ‘feature’ to woo customers but, six months into the loan, unilaterally reduce the benefits of the feature?” (ST Forum Page)
Dec 14: Hike in luggage surcharge wasn’t publicized. “When they were at the check-in counter, they were informed that the overweight charge was $20, not $8, and if they did not pay up they would not get their boarding passes. They had no choice but to pay.” (ST Forum Page)
Dec 20: Potong Pasir to raise S&C charges. THE opposition-held Potong Pasir ward is raising its service and conservancy (S&C) charges for the first time in a decade. Residents there will pay between $2.50 and $8 more a month, depending on the size of their HDB flat. (Straits Times)
Dec 20: Expect to pay more for food from next month. SINGAPOREANS should brace themselves for a sharp hike in food prices starting from New Year’s Day, which could affect anything from curry puffs to ice cream. (Asia One)
Dec 24: Singapore‘s Nov consumer prices up 4.2% year-on-year. Singapore‘s consumer prices rose faster-than-expected in November. The consumer price index – a non-core measure of costs for goods and services – rose 4.2 percent from a year earlier, after rising 3.6 percent in October. (CNA)
Dec 28: Electricity tariffs to go up. Highest since 2001. From next month (Jan 2008), electricity tariffs will go up nearly 6 per cent, to 22.62 cents per kilowatt-hour (kwh). (Straits Times)
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.’
Other reports:
A relentless spiral by Littlespeck. (link)
CASE survey. (link)
Govt spells out fees to be frozen. (link) (link)
2008
Jan 3: Second Link tolls to go up from Feb 1. The tolls for all motorists at Tuas Second Link will be raised by between 10 cents and S$4.40 from 1 February. Motorcyclists will need to pay 10 cents more than the current toll of 60 cents. Cars will be tolled S$4.60, while vans and small lorries will be charged S$10.50. The largest jump is for big lorries, which will have to pay S$21 – S$4.40 more than the current S$16.60. (Channel NewsAsia)
Jan 08: Motorists to face five new ERP gantries. MOTORISTS can expect to pay more over the next few months to use the roads when five new ERP gantries are up, many in the heart of residential areas. (Straits Times) (Straits Times)
Jan 14: Prices of CNY goodies to go up. BE PREPARED to spend 10 per cent to 20 per cent more on foodstuffs this Chinese New Year. (Straits Times)
Jan 15: Inflation in S’pore may hit 6.5% this month. CONSUMER prices in Singapore may surge a staggering 6.5 per cent this month, bringing full- year average inflation to an equally eye-popping 5 per cent, according to Citigroup. (Straits Times)
Jan 18: Lunar New Year dinner prices set to rise by at least 10 per cent. Prices for restaurant dinners are set to rise by at least 10 per cent. (CNA)
Jan 23: Prices of suckling pigs double due to supply shortage in China. The prices of suckling pigs have doubled recently due to a drop in supply from China, and a 5kg pig is going for as much as S$180. (CNA)
Jan 24: Singapore’s consumer price index (CPI) … rose 4.4 per cent last month from a year earlier, with transport contributing the most. (TODAY)
Jan 25: Resale HDB flat prices up 30% above valuation in Q4. BUYERS of resale Housing Board flats found themselves paying $22,000 above the valuation from October to December – a whopping 30 per cent increase more than the previous quarter. (Straits Times)
Jan 29: ERP rates to go up by S$0.50 at certain gantries from Feb 4. Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) rates are set to go up by S$0.50 starting 4 February, according to the Land Transport Authority. (CNA)
Jan 30: ERP rates, more gantries to go up – but road tax cut by 15%. Minister Lim said 16 new gantries will go on between April and November, bringing the total number in operation to 71. This is just the start. The base ERP rate will be upped from $1 to $2, with the increments in $1 instead of the current 50 cents. To make ERP more effective in a rising affluent community, these changes will be made gradually. (Straits Times)
Jan 30: MediShield premiums to go up for better cover. YEARLY premiums for basic MediShield insurance are set to increase – by about $120 for most people – to ensure that subsidised patients saddled with big hospital bills will get better payouts. (Straits Times)
Jan 30: Prime Taxis to raise fares from March. AFTER holding out for over a month, Singapore’s smallest cab operator, Prime Taxis, will raise its fares to come in line with other companies here. (Straits Times)
Jan 30: Prices for tickets for all Cathay cineplexes to go up on Jan 31. Expect to pay up to $10.50 on a weekend. (TODAY)
Feb 02: Prices of vegetables are up between 5 and 10 per cent because higher oil prices. YOUR shopping basket will be a little more expensive this year, no thanks to a rise in vegetable prices. (The New Paper)
Feb 4: Singapore inflation may exceed 5 percent this year – PM Lee. Inflation in the city-state could accelerate to 5 percent this year after rising 2.1 percent in 2007 given rising commodity prices worldwide, the Business Times newspaper quoted Singapore Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong as saying. (Forbes)
Feb 04: Businesses say new ERP gantries may increase operating costs. The rise in Electronic Road Pricing and increase in the number of ERP gantries is worrying at least one business – the couriers. (CNA)
Feb 14: Varsities up tuition fees by 4% to 20%. TUITION fees at the three local universities will go up by between 4 per cent and 20 per cent for the new batch of undergraduates entering in August. (Straits Times)
Feb 26: INFLATION accelerated last month to a 26-year high of 6.6 per cent with housing, food and transport costs registering steep increases over the past year. (Straits Times)
Mar 3: Caltex increases petrol and diesel pump prices. The company increased all grades of petrol by 4 cents per litre at 11am on Monday. Its Regular 95 petrol is now priced at S$2.046 a litre, Regular 98 at S$2.12 and Premium 98 petrol is S$2.286 per litre before discount. (CNA)
March 10: Park in Orchard area? It’ll cost you even more. Parking fees have gone up at 18 out of 20 malls, in one case by 36 per cent. (Straits Times, AsiaOne)
March 12: Fishball prices increase 20% due to rising cost of raw ingredients. Retailers said the prices of fishballs have risen by 20 per cent since last July due to rising cost of raw ingredients. (CNA)
March 17: Price of Chinese herbs to increase by 10%-20%. The price of Chinese herbs is set to increase by 10-20 percent. (CNA)
March 18: Barely two weeks after an increase in pump prices … all four petrol companies raised prices yesterday. Petrol and diesel prices went up by four cents and five cents per litre respectively, with the exception of Shell’s V-Power, which went up by three cents, and Caltex Platinum Techron, which remained unchanged. Regular 98-octane petrol at all four petrol chains now costs $2.160 a litre, while diesel is $1.613 a litre, before discounts. (TODAY)
March 19: Cost of electricity to go up from April as oil prices rise. Electricity tariffs will go up by an average of 1.26 cents (S$0.0126) per kilowatt starting 1 April. (CNA)
March 25: Singapore’s CPI up 6.5 pct year-on-year in February. Singapore’s consumer price index (CPI) jumped 6.5 percent in February from a year earlier, after gaining a 25-year high of 6.6 percent in January. (Trading Markets)
March 25: Singapore inflation stays at 26-year high. Prices of meat and poultry, cooking oils and dairy products clocked double-digit gains, while rice, cereal and fruit cost almost 10 per cent more than they did last year. High oil prices also made themselves felt in electricity bills and at petrol pumps. Indeed, transport costs jumped 9.6 per cent, boosted also by higher taxi fares and car prices. (Straits Times)
March 25: Prices of coffee, milk, sugar rise. In the past six months, the price of a 40-sachet bag of Nescafe 3-in-1 Regular Coffeemix has risen by 14 to 19 per cent across most major supermarkets. It costs $5.20 at Cold Storage and NTUC FairPrice. Super 3-in-1 Coffeemix is up 5 to 9 per cent, and now costs $4.95 at Cold Storage and $4.80 at NTUC FairPrice. (Straits Times)
March 26: Price of paper up by as much as 40%. The price of paper around the world has gone up by as much as 40 percent over the past year. This has caused the price of recycled paper to increase by 100 percent. (CNA)
March 28: NETS revises pricing for NETS CashCard. Consumers are going to have pay more for their NETS CashCard come May, as it will include the cost of the CashCard as well. (CNA)
March 29: Prices of rice rise. FairPrice raises price of its house brand varieties after Thai rice jumps 30% overnight. A 5kg bag of FairPrice Thai White Fragrant Rice now costs $5.30, up from $4.70, and a 10kg bag of Double FairPrice Thai Hom Mali Rice now goes for $17.90, up from $16.25. (Straits Times)
April 5: FairPrice ups price for one premium rice brand. SINGAPORE‘S biggest supermarket chain, NTUC FairPrice, on Friday hiked the price of one of its in-house brands of premium rice. The rise is NTUC’s second in as many weeks: It hiked prices of three other in-house brands of rice by between 60 cents and $1.65 last week. (Straits Times)
April 23: Singapore’s March inflation rate up 6.7% on-year. The CPI for the first quarter of this year was 6.6 percent higher compared with the same quarter of previous year. On a seasonally adjusted basis, the CPI in March was 0.3% higher compared with February. Singapore’s inflation rate has been hovering at its highest level in 26 years. (CNA)
April 23: Pump prices up across all brands. THE OTHER oil companies have all followed Caltex’s move to raise pump prices here. ExxonMobil, Singapore Petroleum Co and Shell on Wednesday upped petrol prices by three cents a litre and diesel by five cents. The latest pump price adjustment is the 10th consecutive increase since July last year – 11th if the GST-triggered increase on July 1, 2007 were to be included. (Straits Times)
April 25: Sharp hike in kindergarten fees. SOME 1,500 students attending the seven PAP Community Foundation (PCF) kindergartens in Woodlands will see their fees shoot up by 30 to 100 per cent. (TODAY, April 25.)
May 3: Rice and cooking oil lead price rise. Yes, the price of rice is going up. But so too are the prices of cooking oil and other items such as instant noodles. (Straits Times)
May 3: SIZZLING HOT: Cooking oil prices on the boil. In the last two months, retail prices have jumped between 9per cent and 56 per cent, depending on the brand.. (Straits Times)
May 9: Expect to pay higher electricity bills. Soaring crude oil prices drove the benchmark market price of electricity to a record last month, and there is not much relief in sight. (Straits Times)
May 16: Caltex pump prices up. Prices at Caltex were increased as of 10.00am today. Prices of Silver, Gold and Platinum petrol grades went by $0.02 to $2.136, $2.210 and $2.336 respectively. (AsiaOne) (TODAY)
May 19: Food operators to charge more for home deliveries. A Straits Times check with 25 food-delivery services found that more than half have increased their menu prices by at least a dollar in the last few months. Five have also upped their delivery fees, while three have increased their minimum order amount. (AsiaOne)
May 23: Singapore inflation rate hits new 26-year high of 7.5% in April. Singapore’s annual inflation rate rose to a new 26-year high of 7.5 percent in April as food, housing and transportation costs soared and is now a risk to the economy, the government said on Friday. (CNA)
May 24: Pump prices up for second time in a week. The latest jump – the 12th consecutive increase since last July – was sparked when oil giant Shell upped petrol prices by five cents a litre and diesel by seven cents at 5pm on Thursday. (Straits Times)
June 5: Poultry prices to rise due to higher transportation costs. The cost of every kilogramme of duck to go up by five cents. The price of chicken products is also expected to increase. (CNA)
June 7: Singapore consumers to feel knock-on effects. THE fuel price hike in Malaysia is going to bite Singaporeans soon, and hard. Prices of a range of goods are set to go up as the cost of trucking them in rises, and fresh food tops the list. (Straits Times)
June 7: Singapore‘s poor turn to temples to fill bellies. Many Singaporeans increasingly turning to free meals at temples to fill their stomachs, as surging global commodity prices hurt, even in a country that is one of the richest in Asia. (Reuters)
June 7: Coach fares to Malaysia up. The Express Bus Agencies Association (EBAA), which accounts for six in 10 buses heading across the Singapore border, has raised its fuel and insurance surcharges from a previous flat fee of $3, to between $5 and $16 — that’s up to five times more — depending on your destination. (TODAY)
June 11: Up prices of eggs and some vegetables. The prices of eggs and some vegetables have jumped at wet markets across the island, according to a Straits Times check. This comes barely a week after Malaysia – Singapore‘s biggest food supplier – trimmed domestic fuel subsidies. (Straits Times)
June 18: ERP rates in CBD to go up, 5 new gantries added. About half of existing ERP gantries islandwide will see their rates increase from July 7. (CNA) (Straits Times)
June 19: Housebrand rice prices up. The Consumers Association of Singapore (Case) has found that prices for housebrands rose between 14 and58 per cent last month. The most dramatic jump was for Cold Storage’s First Choice Thai Fragrant Rice: :From between $8.75 and $9.10 for a 5kg-pack, to $13.80. (TODAY)
June 25: Pump prices up for 13th time since last July. PUMP prices have risen again, with petrol going up by five cents a litre and diesel, 10 cents.This latest increase, the 13th consecutive rise since last July, started when oil giant Shell raised rates at 4pm yesterday. By evening, Caltex and ExxonMobil had followed suit.(Straits Times) (TODAY)
June 25: Electricity tariffs to rise 4.98% from next quarter. Electricity tariffs will go up by 4.98 per cent or by 1.19 cents per kilo watt per hour (kWh) for all households from the next quarter, beginning July 1. (CNA)
June 28: Premium bus fares to go up. PREMIUM bus fares will soon go up, as operators here feel the pinch from higher fuel prices. SBS Transit, which runs more than half of such services, will raise fares by 30 to 60 cents, up to a maximum of $3.60 per trip. The fare hike will affect all of its 40 premium services. (Straits Times)
July 2: Private bus operators up prices over diesel price hikes. FACED with skyrocketing diesel prices, private bus operators are charging more to transport workers and rent out coaches. Ten bus companies contacted by The Straits Times said they have raised prices by at least 10 per cent in the last few months due to rising rising diesel prices, which have almost doubled in the last year. (Straits Times)
July 6: 5 S’pore River ERP gantries kick in on Monday. The new gantries, which will bring the total number of gantries in Singapore to 65, will charge $2 from 6pm to 7.30pm and $1 from 7.30pm to 8pm. (Straits Times)
July 7: Expect to see more of these gantries in coming months. New KPE will have 16, taking grand total from 60 to more than 80. When it opens fully on Sept 20, it will have the most ERP gantries among all roads here. New KPE will have 16, taking grand total from 60 to more than 80 (Straits Times)
July 12: 30-cent fuel levy for cab rides from Thursday. MOST cab rides will cost 30 cents more from next Thursday, after Singapore’s largest taxi operator ComfortDelGro yesterday announced its decision to levy a fuel surcharge on all trips. (Straits Times)
July 14: School bus fares going up on Aug 1. SCHOOL bus operators, bitten by skyrocketing diesel prices, could soon start charging parents $10 to $15 more a month to ferry schoolchildren. (Straits Times)
July 19: SMRT Taxis to levy 30 cents fuel surcharge. SMRT Taxis will levy a fuel surcharge of 30 cents per trip for all taxi trips from July 26. The fuel surcharge will apply to all flag down trips, as well as call centre and advanced bookings, SMRT said in a press release on Saturday. SMRT’s move came after ComfortDelGro implemented the surcharge on Thursday. (Straits Times)
July 22: High power bills: Record number of cases probed. A RECORD number of complaints about overcharging for electricity were investigated by Singapore Power last month. SP Services, the power company’s customer service arm, said it looked into 1,093 cases where customers had complained that their bills for May were higher than in previous months. (Straits Times)
July 23: S’pore June inflation rises 7.5% on higher food, housing costs. Singapore’s consumer inflation stood at a 26-year high in June, rising 7.5 per cent compared with a year ago, according to latest figures from the Department of Statistics. (CNA)
July 24: Singapore ranked fifth most expensive city in Asia. Singapore is now the fifth most expensive city in Asia, according to Mercer Worldwide Cost of Living Survey. In world standings, Singapore is in 13th position, one notch higher than in 2007. (CNA)
July 30: Heartland shoppers hit hardest by Nets fee hike. SOME mom-and-pop stores in the heartland are passing on an increase in Nets fees to consumers, despite being barred from doing so. (Straits Times)
25 August: CPI for households up 7.1% in first six months. The Consumer Price Index (CPI) for households increased by 7.1 per cent in the first half of 2008 compared with the same period last year. (CNA)
Aug 29: More unable to pay electricity bills. 35% of families with power bill woes stay in larger 4- or 5-room flats. As of June this year, about 13,700 households have been put on a pre-paid metering scheme after they had their power supply cut off or were in danger of having the supply disconnected. (Straits Times)
August 30: SINGAPORE‘S public hospitals have raised ward charges in the last two months. The increases at Alexandra Hospital (AH), Changi General Hospital, KK Women’s and Children’s Hospital and SGH took effect at the beginning of July. Tan Tock Seng Hospital and the National University Hospital (NUH) raised their fees this month. (Straits Times).
Sept 12: Bus and train fares up on October 1. The Public Transport Council (PTC) has given the green light for an overall net fare adjustment that will result in fare changes that will range from a 7-cent reduction to a 4-cent increase per journey. (CNA)
Sept 28: Childcare fees going up. The average monthly fees for childcare and infant care now are $684 and $1,184 respectively. A Sunday Times check with 20 childcare centres found that all but three intend to charge $30 to $120 more a month. (Straits Times)
Sept 29: Households to see average rise of about 22% in electricity bills from Oct. On average, all SP Services customers will face a 21.89 per cent increase. (CNA)
Sept 28: Some papers to cost more. The subscription and newsstand prices of both The Straits Times and The Sunday Times, currently at 70 cents and 80 cents respectively, will increase by 10 cents for the Sunday to Friday editions, and by 20 cents for the bumper Saturday edition. (Straits Times)
Oct 6: SingTel increases local fixed line subscription and call rates. SingTel is increasing its local fixed line subscription by S$10 a year from January 1, 2009. Residential customers will therefore pay S$110 per year in subscription and business customers will pay S$160 per year. (CNA)
Oct 21: 3rd ERP gantry on PIE to kick in. MOTORISTS heading west on the Pan-Island Expressway (PIE) will have to pay Electronic Road Pricing (ERP) charges to drive beyond Eunos from Nov 3. The gantry along the expressway near the Eunos exit will be activated, charging $2 between 7am and 7.30am, and $1 between 7.30am and 8am. (Straits Times)
Oct 23: Singapore‘s September inflation up 6.7% on-year. Singapore‘s consumer price index rose 6.7 per cent in September compared with the same period last year. (CNA)
Nov 24: Singapore‘s consumer price index (CPI) for October 2008 increased by 6.4 percent from a year ago due mainly to higher costs of housing and food. (Bernama)
Nov 25: Vegetable prices rise 10-15% due to early rainy season. Vegetable prices have risen by 10 to 15 percent on average during the past month due to the rainy season. (CNA)
Dec3: JUST months after food prices began retreating from record highs, the tab on some products is rising again, sparked in large part by the weakening Singapore dollar. (Straits Times)
Dec 11: 14% hike in school-bus fares too hefty. I was shocked to learn that the fare will be raised to $78. I recall that, just six months ago, it went up by 7 per cent from $68 to $73. (Straits Times)
2010
18 Feb: Singapore polytechnics and ITEto increase tuition fees
22 Feb: Foreign worker levies to go up from July
9 Mar: At least two town councils to up S&C charges
12 Mar: Licence fees to sell cigarettes could increase
18 Mar: Singapore’s 3 public universities, NUS, NTU, SMU, to raise tuition fees
23 Mar: Sheng Siong raises rent at 5 wet markets by 30%
30 Mar: Electricity to cost more from April.
1 Apr: HDB resale prices up 2.7%
20 Apr: Public transport fares to go down 2.5 per cent?
22 Apr: Home loan rates rise.
24 Apr: Private home prices up.
26 Apr: ERP rates up from May 3
30 June: Electricity tariffs to go up again.
02 July: HDB resale prices up 3.8%.
03 July: Distance-based fares for public transport takes effect.
23 July: Resale flat prices up 4.1 per cent.
02 Aug: Night parking charges doubled.
05 Aug: Pump prices up again.
24 August: Singapore inflation up in July
23 September: Singapore’s August inflation up 6.4% on-year
15 September: Rising food prices pinch Asian households
25 October: Inflation at highest level.
25 October: ERP rates to go up at 23 gantries across Singapore
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I think CPF interest rates should be linked to inflation, not the SIBOR:
CPI + 1% for ordinary account
CPI + 3% for special account
This is what most developed countries do with their pension plans. If people are forced to contribute to a government pension such as CPF, the least the government can do is to ensure returns commensurate with inflation.
Fair Citizen 1 July 2010
Your comment below
“remarks that the govt should restrict the prices of public housing, cars and public services…”
completely distorted my viewpoint. Where did I uttered those words of your distortions? I spoke of “PULIC POLICY-INSTIGATED HOUSING INFLATION, AND CAR USE” and NOTHING about “public service” costs.
The simple truth is housing prices have been manipulated to produce the illusory “wealth effect” more for political reason than beneficial economics especially in the last 18 months. And that is destructive. Let us NOT pretend otherwise be denial and distortions of reality.
@ Fair citizen 1 July 2010
And comment like yours below is clearly excited exaggeration
“The reality in many countries is, where the prices of public housing has been kept very low, over time, this housing becomes POVERTY housing”
Low costs housing in Australia built and own by the Housing Commission for rental to extreme poor ( not sold) can be found in prestigious suburbs like Chatswood and in the heart of Sydney. Tell me is Sydney a city of POVERTY housing where all other affluent deserted the place? You know the reality there? I lived there infrequently for the last 25 years!
It is fiction! Public housing in Singapore is mainly for sale – mixed development of different sizes and low-rise HUDC. A fall in price of HDB units across the board post-1997 Asian crisis turned all the estates into ghettos?? I haven’t seen any. Is that your fertile imagination or is it your long range projection, simply unsubstantiated and not evident from historical past in Singapore?
watch this video of a eye witness having a prove of election cheating.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jQCab3QZbBk
If you voted for PAP or plan to vote for PAP in the future, please do not even bother to complain or say anything bad. Vote for them, give them the mandate and be done with it and work your life for the stuff. If you didn’t vote for them or plan not to in the next election, welcome. I hate hypocritical people just like the PAP. Said they cared about Singaporeans but in fact, couldn’t even care less for us but care the most about their own salary.
Typical Singaporeans — complain, complain, complain.
Economics 101 – Demand rising faster than the level of supply = price increases. With a general and progressive increase in prices over a period of time, inflation will result.
Healthy inflation is GOOD for the country, economy and people – people fueling the economy for more growth – economic growth will indirectly channel to wealth increases for its populace.
Over-heated growth is not substainable and bad overall – prices sky-rocket uncontrollably commonly either by a stagnation of supply or unsubstainable push by demand – or maybe even a combination of both.
Singapore’s inflation – if overheated, will be an overwhemling result of abrupt increase in demand —> In brief, YOU are the cause if this inflation.
If you think current inflation is overheated and prices over-rated, then minimize unecessary purchases (i.e. luxury items, cars, mobile phones, branded clothes), minimize the occasions of eating-out, stop gunning for the next property to “upgrade”…. and the market will eventually regulate itself into a “healthy” state.
*Think about it*
Cheers!
Tony Pang, 5 July 2010
i do not disagree toatally with you, neither do i agree totally with you. there are limits to an individual’s influence in price.
no man (or woman) is an island, this being so, no one is immune to societal pressures like peer pressure, media (mainstream & new media), etc… isn’t this the reason why the state has a tight grasp on MSM? it shapes peoples’ thoughts & minds.
also, it unrealistic to expect the market to self-regulate, local govt (or that of other countries) do not let free markets to reign that freely, when the property market seems to overheat rules & regulation were tweeted to prevent a bubble from bursting- for example.
as for life’s excesses like chasing after brand-name goods, that coverted luxury purchase, the next newest & latest gadgets, bigger house, etc… isn’t it something to spur people on to aim high? is there anything wrong with people who yearn for better things in life? the very same can be said of employers who always demand more from employees, govt aiming for growth.
a country will degress if people do not aim high & work towards their ideals. even China is moving away from their old economic model that is heavily reliant on manpower.
To Tony Pang.
I am not sure if you know of a self regulating country that actually work. The world biggest self regulating economy is the US of A. They self regulate until we almost get into the Great Depression. That is the consequence of self regulatory. They are greedy people everywhere. We need some kind of control both in the private and the public sectors.
@ aol166
I agree with you that the “free market” doctrine of monetarist economics failed utterly after only a very short history post-Reagonomics. The concerns now is the drift back to Keynesian economic of Government’s intervention too little of capacity and too late? The fiscal stimulus seems to faltering in US, China and Europe – the underlying financial indebtness just get bigger.
Yes, many are upset by the increase in bus fare. It is even more upsetting to know that they use deception (the ‘pay by distance’) to cloud the increase in fare.And also not the very minimum coverage in the news on this. They are all in carhoots.
We will always remember this.
Thanks TOC for bringing the list up occassionally to remind the daft & forgetful Singaporeans that election is the last stroke to save our lives.
Aiyoh! Why am I being misled into paying more for my transport whether it’s a bus ride or by MRT? ‘Pay by distance’? My Foot! Every which way, I still lose, mind you, EVERYDAY.
With the information created and disseminated about gdp growth, would this lead to businesses hiking prices causing rise in cost of living and consumer price index?
More good years. ?
I think as singaporeans, you guys/gals, need to be more objectives. Lets put it this way, cost is rising due to probably our government’s not doing anything to control it. But, we also need to know that oppositions, while cannot do anything worse, cannot do anything better either. So, I am just saying, lets put some sense in the current government, be realistic, don’t think we can have an opposition taking over the govenrment at the next election (that will NEVER happen)
Be objective with our complaints – think what is possible to be done. Just paying money to bring cost down is economic 101 stupid. Think about how to bring cost down while still stiring up the economy. Stiring up problems for the sake of stiring like most of our oppositions do is ridiculous. It serve no purpose and don’t make Singaporeans confident of their prowless. Think serving the people within the means given to them.
Oppositions in Singapore can never change the way the government is run. There are too many factors against this. Think how oppositions can be of service. Think maybe in terms of shadow government. Form one. It will not be hard. Show what you can do. It is also a training ground. Also a check point for the current government. Thinks logically. Don’t slam people. It makes no sense.
People are people. If they are greedy, corrupt, etc, then let God punish them. If you don’t believe in God, let karma punish them. What goes around comes around….
what ALTernative parties can do is to let the current team running S’pore do as they deem fit. this has been so for decades, people who have any constructive critism have mostly been put down harshly by the powers that be.
ALTernative parties that have existed long enough could do well to be more observant of events unfolding that lead to serious gaffes that cannot be hidden. put themselves in the shoes of the authorities to come up with a Plan B or C, or even better prevent situations from sliding into a mess.
the people cannot be paying for the slip-ups caused by negligence (or could it be more to it?) by the powers that be. they are sworn in to serve the people, if they have failed time & again, & do not make good, why should they be allowed to stay? must S’pore be on the brink socially, economically or otherwise before something is done?
Our property market is the target of severe international speculation. It will crash like a ton of bricks when the time comes.
Please think logically about the property market.
1. Singapore has less space than people
2. We are getting more and more people from the region (foreign talents)
3. House price are based on the lowest denominator (HDB new flats)
4. New graduates are coming out every year from our universities
So, given the above factors, there is not much of a chance property price in Singapore is going to “crash like a tone of bricks” any time soon.
The sustainability of the Singapore property market is based on the government’s sustainability. As long as we have a stable (enough) economy, there is not a chance the property price is going to fall. If it fails, it will fall around maximum 20 – 30% like what we see during the the few recessions.
So, be reasonable. The comment above is not logical. International speculation got little to do with our housing prices. It got to do with currency but not house.
Inflation and other stuff yes, but not international speculations. Internal speculations, that is another thing. Singaporeans love to speculate. Buy a condo, sell in 4 months, make 200,000$. Ok, that is fine.
So, to curb internal speculation, we need measures, like capital tax gains, etc. We need more to monitor these “speculators” but without interfering with free market force. It is a balance.
Please know more about all this b4 complaining about stuff. We need to be knowledgeable enough to take on the government. They are not going to be shaken by our “complaints” but by our smartness and logicalness. We cannot expect to take the government by saying things like you are wrong and we are right, we cannot say things that make no sense. Make sense, get into a logical discussion, see how Singaporeans can make a difference.
cost of public transport & utility bills up cos’ oil price go up, but when oil price drop, cost of transport & bills still stay up there? dun make sense leh…
just have to point out places where officialdom is only keen on making $$ & cents, not sense.
this is how people should take on the govt that was elected to serve the people, not be treated like cash cows.
@aol166
There is nothing political about my comment. I’m just expressing my take on the Singapore property market. It’s obvious that our market is highly speculative, encouraged by govt. policy. Developers, local speculators as well as international speculators are driving our market up. The bubble must burst. With America, Europe, and Japan all in the doldrums and likely to remain so for years after the bursting of the global credit bubble, our market will crash by at least 50%, because it is so manipulated that one could smell it. Ignore my warning at your own peril.
Hi aol166, what happened to your logic between 1996 until 2008 barring the few global & regional crisis. Was it not the case that foreign talent was coming in, universities were churning out graduates or is the case where in 2009-2010, Singapore has shrunken and there is not enough land to match up the ” latent” demand or the Singapore population has jumped up suddenly. By the way I never understood what does “latent demand” means, a simple explanation from the so called economists when they cant explain why in 2009 when the world/singapore was barely out of recession the property market caught fire and jumped by almost 30-35% within a span of few months…
I believe you get some solid data to support your arguments and then comment on other people’s logic!!…International speculation has got much to do with property price rises here, many wealthy Asians especially Chinese, Indonesians, Malaysians & Indians are buying high end property in Singapore which creates an artificial spill over on the other lower segments…Also since ~ 80% of the Singaporeans own property here you cannot deny political reasons to create an artifical feel good factor…We all know why?..We are not that dumb..
So aol166, pls show us some facts to support your argument on graduates, foreign influx etc..I shall love to see it..
Meanwhile enjoy your paper wealth and feel happy!…
Hi,
I agree with you on the issues. Please don’t misunderstand me. I was unemployed for the last 2 years and now I got a job that pays 40% of what I was getting before. So, I am an unhappy person and I don’t have a great paper wealth like you put it.
I am just practical. We cannot go ahead and complaint and complain without a possible solution. We cannot say they are doing a bad job when we are not even able to say how we can do better.
I remembered during the time when Suharto just got kicked off and the students were protesting. They protest and protest. But what can they do better. Can they do better?
We don’t want to be a nation of complainers. We need to know our rights, our position (we can vote) and our abilities.
I will vote for the opposition in my ward. That is for sure. I think the PAP is too swell headed but I don’t think we should expect the oppositions to do any better because they haven’t come up with a logical solution to our problems. Kicking out all foreigners is never a solution. Having more rights for Singaporeans is. But we need to tell the government that…
aol166, 28 July 2010
quote: “I am just practical. We cannot go ahead and complaint and complain without a possible solution. We cannot say they are doing a bad job when we are not even able to say how we can do better.”
going by your logic, should hawker stall owners/restaurants/eateries challenge customers to a cooking competition (whenever a complain is made)? be told to cook for themselves if standards are not up to par? must customers cook better than the chefs to have a right to complain?
there are countless things that one can never be able to do better, eg., make your own car, build your own house, make your own clothes, shoes, furniture, etc…
if one does not make that many items that he/she owns, does it mean that one has no right to complain of a manufacturing, technical, design, etc, fault?
a nation will never have complainers if negative feedback is attended to promptly & reciprocated. but from personal experience, S’pore’s culture does not welcome any form of feedback. public transport is one very good example.
XD
I think you are confused with what I said.
When you compared government system with hawker center, I think you are getting way off track.
To cook better is not a measurement. You must remember governing is more complicated than char kwaytiau.
I think you need to know that even though Singapore do not welcome feedback, I think we need to know our position.
We can “complaint” by voting. That is all I can say….
aol166, 29 July 2010
your logic that people can only complain if they themselves can do better than the party that is being complained about is flawed.
the difference in the level of complexity aside, the reasoning i am trying to highlight (in your ealier post) is the same- complain only if one can do better.
to improve, any complaints within reason should be appreciated & looked into. the spirit to improve does not require feedback to come from people from certain “position”.
are you following thus far?…
I am following what you are saying but let’s be fair.
Complexity will play a role no matter how we want to say it doesn’t.
I agree the government is not paying attention. That is why we should show them they should by our vote…
aol166, 29 July 2010
thanks for your reply. :)
complexity does have its influence, what i did was to simplify your line of reasoning, gave it another example along that line to make you (& others?) see how flawed it is. at its core, it remains the same.
yes, voting for change seems like the only way. how far the mighty have fallen…
I see your points.
I just want to have intelligent Singaporeans talking about alternatives instead of complainers. We have the latter everywhere.
I also do not wish to see the PAP fall as we don’t have alternative. I just want them to know that we are here and we have the voice (democracy)…
aol166, 30 July 2010
the latter is almost everywhere as a result of political apathy, indifference.
PAP’s leadership is not as robust as you may like, from all the negative news over the years, they may just be the tip of the iceberg. for all you know, internally it may have decayed beyond repair, leaving only a shell that the public sees.
whether PAP fall or not, PAP is losing its grip. hence is slowly pushing its responsibility back to the people.
i am certainly voting for a change.
i am giving the alternative an opportunity to prove themselves. If they are no good, then i will vote them out as well. If good, then they stay. At least they are given a chance to prove themselves.
For me, the ruling party has fallen below my expectations. Enough is enough. time for change. time to kick ‘em out until they can prove worthwhile again.
this is what democracy is.
Hmmmmm….. I just read this:
Private firms urged to help the needy
Mon, Aug 02, 2010
my paper
THE private sector plays a key role in community efforts to reach out to those in need, said Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean yesterday.
These are just my own personal comments from what I’ve personally heard or read recently.
I think most citizens are generally unhappy about our government are that they have been:
- unwilling to admit mistakes/lack of foresight aka NOT MY FAULT and responding high-handedly when policies are questioned (see responses on the recent floods in various parts of the city)
- unable/unwilling to listen and address the concerns of the average citizen (price-setting of HDB flats is prime example, transport costs are another)
- new policies/laws/rules are counter-productive and contradictory (how does doubling the night-parking rate help to alleviate this problem?)
- using the mantra: pay and your problem may be solved. can you see how pervasive this has become in our society? have any of our current issues been solved by throwing our individual (not public funds) money at them?
- “leveling” the playing field and shifting goalposts constantly (I won’t give you a chance to vote me out if I can help it. 5-member GRCs??? Why can’t each MP be voted in on his/her own merit and not be piggybacking on an anchor MP in his ward?)
Given that we are now living in the age of information and knowledge, we are still treated like 3-year-olds by our government: “Singapore is heaven on earth and you shouldn’t live anywhere else / You can’t vote me out, no one else can do the job / You must listen to me / My way is the only way / My way or the highway / Pay a lot and you might get your way.”
Sound familiar? Just some of the messages that I’ve perceived from the comments our politicians made (some of whom were not even voted in due to walkovers) and recent policies they have implemented.
From what I observe, the government bodies (and their members) are either:
- totally clueless as to how they can implement policy to influence human behaviour (in which case i suggest they read the book Freakonomics)
- mastered the art of using policy to influence and manipulate human behaviour and benefit hugely from (then it’s the citizens’ lack of foresight to have elected a team that have abused our trust in them)
What is it, then? You decide, since some of you may actually have a chance to vote. I can’t, since I still live within the bounds of a GRC, until they decide to re-mark the boundaries.
Hmmmmm….. I just read this:
Private firms urged to help the needy
Mon, Aug 02, 2010
my paper
THE private sector plays a key role in community efforts to reach out to those in need, said Deputy Prime Minister Teo Chee Hean yesterday
>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>>
Just return the ‘NEEDY’ their jobs you stole from them,MR TEO.
anyhting short of that is not ‘HELPING’.
Does the private sector include Singapore Incorporation Ltd? That is SG government!
Sinkies are slowly being cooked in a steaming pot. Just like a Frog, until we realize it, our whole system will collapse.
We have given them chances to build the nation but what we get in return?
Is time to give other a chance.
A chance to prove themselves.
By giving other a chance is to give yourselve a chance too. Vote the PM n DPM out.
Corruption is beginning to surface in the public sector.
Serious corruption.
Please don’t be silly. There is no way I would want PAP to be out for tne next election and neither will they be going out. The opposition cannot get their act together and cannot co-operate and have never govern any country before. I don’t trust them at all to run this country.
The idea is to get as many as 10 – 15 oppostion memebers in the Parliment. This will show to PAP that there is a serious enough opposition. The Singaporean are thinking and we are sounding our opinion. That is all I wish and hope for.
As for voting out the PAP, PM and DPM, that is a dream in the air….
aol166, 8 August 2010
if PAP can get its act together S’poreans would not be complaining that much.
1) there would not be any floods above ankle-level because the drainage is world class.
2) most (say 80%) people would be earning above annual inflation rate, to wean themselves of NGOs/charities/govt aid.
3) public transport & energy market will serve its people instead of maximising profits.
4) people would not feel so alien in their own country when service staff cannot even understand basic english (its a wonder how they got the job…) some years back.
there are people who trust PAP because they have brought prosperity to S’pore from the early days of independance to say about 10 years back? but things changed about some years back. its hard to get an exact date because the tip of the iceberg isn’t obvious, like Pearl Harbour during WWII, when a confirmation of the threat (Japanese forces approaching) is dead certain, most likely you’re dead.
there is not just 1 opposition/alternative party, why expect all of them to sing the same tune, IMPO only PAP does that, that’s why they under the PAP’s banner. the alternative parties are serious, but PAP only give them 2 seats in Paliament? it does not reflect the 30+% of votes they get last election.
if PAP continue to rule S’pore, many will be living a nightmare that will only get worse. even SM Goh sees that- PAP sold their S’pore dream to the masses. they reaped the benefits, while many are living a dream that never was, under PAP.
Well, PAP and MM said that the flood is caused by “Act of God”. If one flood is caused by “Act of God”, then 3 floods must be caused by “Act of Gods”
It’s a little unfair to list all these without a corresponding post where the price comes down, e.g. for gasoline.
What the the cost of government ….increase in salaries of Ministers
and to Dude..what about the price coming down..e.g. the salaries of the lower imcome..
.
.
AS HEALTH MINISTER, HE DOESN’T SEEMS TO KNOW COMMON SINGAPOREANS CAN ONLY AFFORD BASIC MEDISAVE, and can’t afford private medical insurance.
Never use brain, he tinks every1 earning 2.4 million bucks.
http://www.todayonline.com/Singapore/EDC101027-0000091/How-Health-Minister-Khaw-paid-$8-for-his-heart-bypass-,,,
//Panache
In principle, interest rates should raise with inflation.
But as you remarked, it has not worked that way with CPF interest rates.
That’s one of the tricks invented by govt to seemingly solve one problem when they actually wanted to solve another – their own problem.
Who pays CPF interest rates? Of course the govt.
Why would they pay more when they can change the rules to pay less?
how much sense does this statement have?
answer it and you will see how much manipulation exists.
“Punggol is so short of land, we cannot build too high buildings, perhaps because of earthquake or tsunami risk, that we have to use land sparingly, charge high prices, so if you want a 1200sqft 99-year HDB BTO flat, we need to charge you $300-500k (after ‘market subsidy’).”
If you can convince people this statement is true, you can become Housing Minister.
Keep the list going to justify why PAP must be kicked OUT.
Gosh! Is this a trend? The price increase is like a monthly event.. When is my salary increasing?
One very glaring item is missing in the list. The cost of government has also increased by 8.8% this year. This is a relatively humongous cost to us all. It has been included in the budget for this year isn’t it?
stephanie
Cost of government has done up by 8.8%. However it must be noted that the inflation has increased because of increase in government collected fees, such as ERP. Overall the revenue collected by the government through fee increase is much higher than the 8.8% increase. I believe the non-direct taxation is increasing too fast here but them I not a economist and could be wrong
I hope this list shows as reminder to all Singaporeans that inflations is caused by PAP and not so much of external factors.
yeo guat kwang of PAP!!!! Thank u for rising the cost of everything electric , GST , COE , ERP … ETC ….
Now i have to work double the hours i used to work , i am already 55yrs old .. my children will all leave SIngapore to stay in other country because of you , Thank u ,yeo guat kwang!!!
Please tabulate another for 2011. Thanks