It’s not as bad as you think
Discard your bias for an accurate picture of the economy
INTO the final month of the year, almost everyone around me have suddenly vanished: fewer colleagues are showing up at work and badminton buddies are nowhere in sight.
They’ve all gone overseas! Many of my friends and relatives have major annual trips each year to exotic places at the far ends of this planet, like Europe, the US, Iceland (to see the Northern Lights) or Peru (to visit Machu Picchu), not to mention quarterly short-haul trips to regional places like China, Australia or Japan.
Malaysian Chinese are among the most travelled people around, probably second only to Singaporeans and Hong Kongers.
Many may argue that Westerners travel a lot, but let me tell you they fall far behind us.
Statistics show only about a third of Americans hold valid international passports. In other words, almost two-thirds of Americans do not set foot on foreign lands and for those who have, Canada and Mexico are perhaps their only overseas destinations.
It is therefore natural that many Americans have not heard of Malaysia. Since they apparently do not travel overseas much, their lack of geographical knowledge is easily understandable.
I have no idea whether Malaysians’ passion for travelling has anything to do with our culture or genetic make-up. But one thing for sure, it has something to do with money!
You can’t travel without money, can you?
Of course, some may argue that travelling is very much in the blood of many, with or without money. This I understand, especially when our youngsters are concerned.
The question is, you’ve got to address your fundamental needs first before you have extra cash for air tickets, accommodation and a taste of exotic culture.
Our generous travel-related spending doesn’t seem to match our endless complaints of skyrocketing fuel and prices of goods.
When the petrol price went up by seven sen last month, a friend started to hurl curses as if the seven sen had made his life so miserable. The thing is, he had just booked a Greece and Turkey tour for his whole family, and the RM10k bill seems to be peanuts to him.
Some politicians have sworn that the Malaysian economy would go bust and many choose to believe without recognising the reality that the country’s 6.2% Q3 GDP expansion, 7.2% private consumption growth and foreign reserves is enough to support 7.5 months of imports.
Many have over-interpreted the withdrawal of a Hong Kong dim sum shop and a Korean cosmetic company from the Malaysian market, claiming that doom is around the corner, without seeing new shops springing up like mushrooms after the rain.
Economy is a scientific and professional field that must never be distorted by an individual’s personal feelings or liking.
Sure enough, there are still poor people in this country, and problems still abound in our economy. We need time to overcome these problems. In the meantime, there are undeniably many who are doing very well.
I’m neither an optimist nor a naysayer but to get an accurate picture of the country’s state of economy, we need to first get ourselves out of our partisan prejudices. We must look at this more impartially and professionally.
We need to look at the numbers and mid- to long-term prospects to judge whether the national economy is doing okay. Many have simply been blinded by the superficial picture that catches their eye and have neglected the actual aspects of the economy.
We always grumble that we never earn enough to make ends meet. This problem is not new, and has been in existence for thousands of years, right since money first came into being.
We don’t have enough money because our expectation from life is always going up.
We are no longer content with a modest cup of RM1.30 Hainanese coffee but a RM13 gourmet brew. We don’t go to neighbourhood food stalls for dinner any more but head for posh seafood restaurants. The year-end family trip is no longer to Cameron Highlands but snowy Hokkaido, and our first car is not a Proton but a Honda.
The more we expect out of life, the more cash we need to satisfy ourselves. This, nevertheless, is not a bad aspect but a positive force needed to move the human race forward.
Another important point: As our society keeps changing, so does our economy.
Some of our malls are empty, not because the economy is bad but because we simply have too many malls, not to mention online shopping is getting popular among the younger crowd.
Some businesses are not doing well not because consumption is weak but because of a shift in consumerism pattern.
Some of these shops are still operating in the old-fashioned methods of the last century, rarely appealing to our fashion-conscious millennial today.
Many furniture manufacturers grumble about poor business but on the opening day of Ikea Tebrau, shoppers queued up outside for hours before daybreak just to get into the massive furniture mall.
They did this willingly because they wanted something fashionable, of superior quality.
Some say the automobile industry is depressed but Perodua’s new Myvi sold more than 20,000 units in the first month.
The question is not whether the economy is good or bad, but with what attitude we see our economy, what kind of life we want and whether we are resolved enough to create more wealth and opportunities for ourselves. — Sin Chew Daily / Asia News Network