WITH reference to Monday's article, 'Job woes deepen credit-card debts', if we compare population figures from the Statistics Department and credit card figures from Monetary Authority of Singapore, we will find more unsettling numbers.
Singapore's resident population grew less than 15 per cent, from 3.27 million in 2000 to 3.64 million in 2008, but in the same period, credit card numbers grew from 2.45 million to 5.64 million, and rollover grew from $1.71 billion to $3.3 billion. This is an explosive growth of 230 per cent in credit cards and almost 200 per cent growth in rollover debts.
To have an idea of how big these figures are, the interest paid (at 24 per cent) by Singapore alone for credit card rollover is a whopping $600 million. This is more than three times the average amount the Ministry of Community Development. Youth and Sports spends on the elderly, disabled and needy families in a single year.
Why would any Singaporean pay so much in credit card interest alone to enrich banks and their wealthy executives is beyond me; the same amount could help so many less fortunate and needy people around us. One thing is certain - in a short span of eight years, more Singaporeans have credit card debts and in larger amounts than before.
When the credit card industry goes unchecked, it can easily morph itself into a large, passive, predatory lending industry where huge amounts of unsecured loans are generated. Governments around the world now realise that even a small problem (with one instrument) in their banking and financial sector will have a leverage destructive effect on the entire economy.
The combination of easy money and bad behaviour by the American people has partly resulted in the current financial tsunami that had swept across the world, causing a near collapse of the world financial system and a global recession.
On the same day in The Straits Times, Minister for Finance Tharman Shanmugaratnam pledged more money to help charities in the next Budget. Singaporeans should retain the kampung spirit where we try our best to help one another, and not leave everything to the Government. We all have the social responsibility of taking care of one another as whatever goes around comes around. Instead of indulging ourselves, we should retain our virtues and values of responsible spending and saving. Syu Ying Kwok
Singapore's resident population grew less than 15 per cent, from 3.27 million in 2000 to 3.64 million in 2008, but in the same period, credit card numbers grew from 2.45 million to 5.64 million, and rollover grew from $1.71 billion to $3.3 billion. This is an explosive growth of 230 per cent in credit cards and almost 200 per cent growth in rollover debts.
To have an idea of how big these figures are, the interest paid (at 24 per cent) by Singapore alone for credit card rollover is a whopping $600 million. This is more than three times the average amount the Ministry of Community Development. Youth and Sports spends on the elderly, disabled and needy families in a single year.
Why would any Singaporean pay so much in credit card interest alone to enrich banks and their wealthy executives is beyond me; the same amount could help so many less fortunate and needy people around us. One thing is certain - in a short span of eight years, more Singaporeans have credit card debts and in larger amounts than before.
When the credit card industry goes unchecked, it can easily morph itself into a large, passive, predatory lending industry where huge amounts of unsecured loans are generated. Governments around the world now realise that even a small problem (with one instrument) in their banking and financial sector will have a leverage destructive effect on the entire economy.
The combination of easy money and bad behaviour by the American people has partly resulted in the current financial tsunami that had swept across the world, causing a near collapse of the world financial system and a global recession.
On the same day in The Straits Times, Minister for Finance Tharman Shanmugaratnam pledged more money to help charities in the next Budget. Singaporeans should retain the kampung spirit where we try our best to help one another, and not leave everything to the Government. We all have the social responsibility of taking care of one another as whatever goes around comes around. Instead of indulging ourselves, we should retain our virtues and values of responsible spending and saving. Syu Ying Kwok
