Seems like the cost of almost everything is on the rise. Latest reports say that the price of stationary are expected to go up by 20% to 30% within the first quarter of 2014.
Why are the prices increasing? This is partly due to an increase in cost from the implementation of minimum wages, transport costs, the new electricity tariff rate, higher fuel price and the currency exchange rate between the ringgit and China renminbi. For those who don’t know, most of the imported stationery items are from China. Only a small handful of items are locally made, with some coming from Taiwan, India and a few other countries. The upcoming GST tax also plays a big role in the prices of stationeries as industry players say they need to make some kind of profit.
The products involve are papers, clips, staplers, pencils, pens, colour pencils, files, note books, school exercise note books, notepads, markers and board dusters. The new price, expected to come in effect around March 2014, will only be affected for new stationeries and not the older stock.
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