The recession has reached our shores, with the IMF forecasting that the Malaysian economy will shrink by 3.5 per cent this year.
Is it affecting you? Is your job secure or have you been laid off? How are you coping? Have you stopped eating out?
Me? I have stopped buying processed food (in bottles or cans or cookies) from the hypermarkets. It’s more expensive, and less nutritious than natural, fresh food.
Share with us how the recession is affecting you (if at all)… and tell us how you are coping. Tell us your stories.
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Dear Progressive Friends
Writing from the public health point of view (and based on previous public health research), we can expect the following as people try to cope with recession, unemployment and financial problems:
More alcoholism and other forms of substance abuse
More domestic violence
More suicides and attempted suicides
Malnutrition
More homelessness and disguised homelessness
Certain groups will be hit harder than others e.g.
the poor, single women with children
Things don’t look too good at the moment, I’m sorry to say.
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We shd help boost M’sian economy , doing our part by merely buying M’sian made goods. Shd keep the purchasing up & while stop on imported branded goods.
It will be appropriate if we pay less TAX & therefore extra money to spend. Minimise Govt wastage in unneassary huge cronies project. EPF shd pay us higher divendent instaed on investing on unprofitable agencies. Forget the crooked bridge. Govt shd not charged high tax on our fuel.
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My wife now cooks lunch and dinner together and we eat for 2 meals. Eating out, which used to be quite regular, has now been been cut to once every alternate Sunday. I am in corporate training Anil, and even big MNCs are claiming budget cut in training funds, so have to brace for a long while in the bunker…
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Me? I am cutting back, that is for sure. I consider myself upper middle class and I am hit from many angles. I am the so-called in between (in terms of class) and we are the ones that suffer the most. The really rich ones with “old money” are not affected, Penang has quite a number of them. The poor ones are not affected too, as they are not even aware of the recession.
WORK
I have not being laid off YET…but I have seen many of my friends who are either laid off, had a pay cut, no bonus, etc. Orders for factories (be it Multinationals or local SMEs) have dropped tremendously. I had spoken to a number of people and they mentioned that their business is really slow.
PROPERTIES
I was one of those who thought I was smart. I invested in a number of properties during the launch/construction phases. I was hoping to sell them for a sizeable profit upon completion. I am now stuck with a few properties which I cannot sell, even for a loss! There are so few buyers or even viewers! I am using my savings to pay the installments but I am not sure how long it would last. If I loose my job, then it is all gone.
Eating out, shopping, travelling etc is definately out for me. My family just window shops during the weekends. If you are at the shopping centres, you would noticed many people walking around empty handed, even there are sales going on.
Thanks for giving me this forum to voice out my worries.
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Hi Anil;
My end month pay is mostly thrown into food and you know Anil, unlike your consumption, fish is a luxury food for me these days. I remember my mum was feeding me fish while I was growing up. The prices of fish have rocketed. How can I feed my children with chicken everyday? Sheesh…
There are things to pay car maintenance, house, bills, school and tuition etc. I am thriving here. I don’t go out during the weekends and I can’t even afford to go for domestic holiday. Money is just “ngam-ngam” for me. In order to survive my other half is taking up 2 jobs. I am holding on to my present work unless my employer does some costs cutting…
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Nowadays, bring food from home for lunch and only buy what is need for weekly consumption. Try to spend less on item not really needed and less healthy.
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Eating out? Frankly, I’m nearly cleaned out of my retirement funds. Would be glad to afford eating in, much less eating out.
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It has affected my business but I didn’t sit still and do nothing about it. I turned to the internet last year and worked hard to cushion the effects. Glad to say, I am doing pretty well online. Praise God for his guidance.
I believe everyone should not just sit down and fret about it. Do something and you’ll be surprised that it may be a blessing in disguise.
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Some manufacturing sectors like hard disk manufacturing is already in the recovering state. Those Thai workers retrenched by Seagate and Hitachi are recruited back for production ramp-up.
At least three headhunters are knocking my door in last two weeks for manufacturing job openings in Dubai and China. No headhunters are interested on me in the previous six months.
This is a tell-tale sign that the manufacturing sector is recovering.
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I don’t think anyone who works in the export manufacturing sector could consider their job ‘secure’ right now.
My position’s reasonably OK, at the moment, the company was fortunately in good financial shape before the slow down, so while revenue and profits have shrunk, the chances of survival remain good. Taking an effective pay cut due to regular shut-downs.
Family eating out less, cut down on some ‘luxuries’ which we previously didn’t think twice about spending on.
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I still observe
Many people still do shopping
In Tesco, shops and outlets
Markets full of housewives
Marketing and morning tea and breakfast
The economy running down
Yet the businesses in the market thriving
Apparently the effects have not sunken in
People here in general still do as much as usual
Morning and at night……even in the new town
Near to UTAR university and college students
Personally I cut down dining in restaurants
Now I look for cheap and nutritious food
Claypot chicken and two large plates of fresh vegetables for $7.80
I don’t think you can get it anywhere…………
Occasionally cooking at home
Now is the time to scout
The cheap nutritious food in town
As the saying goes
Stretch the ringgit to its limit
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A miserable 300gm of regular milk powder cost rm7.
It now cost rm400 per month (vegetables only)in groceries just to feed a small family of 3. Fish or poultry not included as those are luxury item now .
Even for a person like me who consume one meal a day finds it hard to juggle utility bills . Each time there is a rise in fuel and tolls means each time my purchasing power decreases.
In 10 years time i be getting my EPF money.
I dont think it is all rosy by then after seeing the multiple ways the government siphoned my EPF savings and dwindling interest rates.
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Everything is so expensive but i still unsure how onion also luxury food today. Check this website.
http://de-run.blogspot.com/2009/05/onion-oh-onion.html
Riz
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i am working in london for 5 months. IF i am earning british dollar here, the cost of living is really affordable. a can of food can be 57 cents and that would be a meal. I am buying reduced price grocery to survive.
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Here’s an article on homelessness and tent cities in USA:
http://www.commondreams.org/headline/2009/05/05-3
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I think my job is secure but still have to do belt-tightening. When I eat economy rice I try to go for vegetarian only – meat is expensive. I don’t order drinks for lunch – can do that in the office. Try to reduce driving. By the way, an exhaust fan can pull cool night air in – saving on air-conditioning.
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