Giant Hypermart Closings : What I Said About Economy Grinding To A Halt Is Coming True.

Folks, first here is a  lighter note on Bajet 2018 :

Bayangkan jika seseorang tu....

* Seorg pesawah 3 bulan RM600..
* lepas tu pesawah tu dpt brim pulak RM1200..
* lepas tu pesawah tu ketua kampung RM1500
* lepas tu pesawah tu warga emas RM350
 *lepas tu pesawah tu pesara kjaan RM750
 * lepas tu pesawah tu partime bilal RM1500
* pencen bulanan RM2500

TOTAL: dah tak reti nak kira sbb byk sgt

*Jom jadi petani.... pertanian itu adalah perniagaan*

My comments : The above is going around. The numbers add up to RM10,200. This is just some satire about the buta money being dished out by moron.  But it is not too far from the reality of the buta money being dished out.

This morning I had breakfast with a friend who has run a successful business. Lives in a bungalow. Has multiple cars in the garage (large family). Owns a few other houses, apartments and owns a few shoplots. Also owns land in his home state. Self made. Honest businessman.

But his advice to me this morning:  "Just shut down your business Syed. Stay at home and spend your time at home. There is no point doing business anymore."

My friend's business (M&E, commercial coolers installation etc) has been hit by the GST - in two painful ways.

First his business has slowed down. He has reduced his staffing by almost 50%.   He says there is "no more work".

Secondly the Customs guys are bullying him in the GST payments. To be careful to file his GST payments accurately my friend pays an accountant to prepare the GST submissions. That costs him money. Despite doing this, the Customs keeps finding fault with his submissions and often they have to be resubmitted. If you are late you face compounds, fines and jail sentences. 

He was telling me all this after I went to the Metrology office nearby (the weighing machine monopoly created by the gomen) to have my electronic weighing machine calibrated.  

The Metrology guys are also trying to put you out of business. They keep changing the rules. This year they say that the owners who bring in the weighing machines for calibration cannot plug in and set up the machines  (inside their calibration room).  Only they can handle the machines. This reminds me of the old tricks the gomen guys used to play before the weighing machine calibration was privatised to Metrology. They used to 'tamper' the weighing machines. So it will not read carefully. Then they will tell you to call the repairman. Those guys will charge you over RM200. I will be writing more about this later.

Where are the 'anti-monopoly act' dunggus?  I have been saying for the past two years (since the GST) that the economy is shutting down.

Well, it is confirmed that FIVE GIANT HYPERMARTS have shut down now. Here is the news:

• FIVE Giant supermarkets will shut Nov 5
• retail industry struggle with sluggish sales
• further weakening as consumers tighten belts
• hypermart worse-than-expected decline 4.8% 1st qtr '17
• Malaysia Retailers Association said further drop in sales 2.5% in 3rd qtr 
• Malay Business Council revealed GST led to closure of Malay retail biz
• Giant supermarkets opened 73 years ago – Malay Mail

My comments :  Folks, the worst is coming in 2018.  

Each Giant store should have about 200 workers (average).  So that means about 1000 people are out of work. It does not matter if 60% of them are Myanmars or Nepalis. 

The Malaysian economy has certainly ground to a halt at FIVE GIANT HYPERMARTS.

1000 workers x RM1500 average salary =  RM1.5 million per month lost from the economy. (Or RM18 million per year).

RM18 million worth of direct purchasing power or consumption is  gone.

Then there will be no more three tonne trucks delivering goods to the 5 GIANT hypermarts. Assuming 10 trucks deliver goods each day that adds up to 50 trucks per day or 1500 trips per month that has gone out of business. Truck drivers, logistics companies will go out of business.

What about the suppliers to Giant?  Some of them will surely make losses also because certainly Giant is a major buyer of their products.

What about the other tenants at those places where Giant is closing down? The chicken rice shop, the KFC, McDonalds, the eyewear shop (kedai cermin mata) will all be affected. They will all also close down at the same premises or suffer much reduced sales.

The economy is grinding to a halt. 

It is not just retail business. As I said my businessman friend whom I have mentioned is in the cooler business, mostly commercial. Sales are very poor.

 It is getting worse. We are not seeing a turnaround situation. Even the moron gomen says now the economy is slowing down. 

I doubt their economic growth figures.

A friend in the know tells me that a staffer at the Bank Club of Doom has been given stacks of data to extract facts and numbers to justify that the 2020 thing is on target. A report to that effect will be published soon.

How many of you believe the gomen's inflation figures? 

3+ % inflation rate?? 

They must be joking.

Arent there any half intelligent half honest Civil Servants in the gomen service anymore? 

I thought I was the only one who did not believe the gomen's GDP numbers. Apparently not. Here are a few more people who do not believe the gomen's GDP figures:

(GDP) may not tell whole story in terms of standards of living

Malaysia growth 5.8% in 2nd qtr 2017, 5.6% in 1st qtr
The Edge said survey by MIER, FMM : GDP numbers not felt by all

FMM past president said retail not done well 

increasing scepticism about GDP being good measure of prosperity

man in street disillusioned despite strong GDP growth 

because purchasing power shrinking, thanks to rising cost of living.

• economy growing but prices remain high 
• [many are] grappling with rising cost of living 
• higher cost of doing business 
• wage earners, businesses not feeling better off  
  

debate over use of GDP as benchmark of economic growth surfaced last week 

FFM president suggested economy be measured in US dollars.
 

Lim said GDP per capita in USD had weakened due to ringgit depreciation

RHB Research said understood message FFM trying to convey.
 

FMM says while GDP may see growth, prosperity may not grow in tandem 

purchasing power affected by ringgit’s depreciation

My comments : Obviosuly there was NO GROWTH at FIVE Giant hypermarts. No need to say more.

Here is my prediction : more businesses are going to shut down in Malaysia.

There will be less GST collection (sebab business sudah tutup bodoh).

There will be less corporate tax and income tax collection (sebab business sudah tutup bodoh).

There will be more and more unemployment (sebab business sudah tutup bodoh)

There will be more unemployed graduates  (sebab business sudah tutup bodoh)

Do not kill the goose that lays the golden eggs. 

The goose that lays the golden eggs is the businessman, the factory, the hypermart, the steel mill, the retail shop - all of which generate income taxes and corporate taxes for the gomen. 

No matter what is their religion or race, DO NOT KILL THE GOOSE THAT LAYS THE GOLDEN EGGS.

Your itek cannot lay even jack shit. 

Your itek only knows how to melanc_p using other peoples' money. 

Duit buta.

That is what is making you poor.

But the other goose knows how to lay golden eggs.

Do not kill the goose that lays the golden egg.