Cost of living is too high
Published:Tuesday | April 2, 2024 | 12:07 AM
THE EDITOR, Madam:
Every week the prices of retail goods on supermarket shelves seem to move in a northerly direction, usually by a few dollars. Jamaica’s cost of living is currently too high, which has been the sad reality for way too long.
The Jamaican dollar’s stretchability has decreased over the past five years. Consumers have to be very selective and cautious about the prices and/or quantity of the items they buy. The monthly cost of utilities are also too high.
Long gone are the days when $5,000 could buy a week’s worth of groceries for a family of four or five. Now one can only buy a handful of items that may not even last a week.
The Government must encourage private-sector entities to drop prices, and also look at offering tax incentives that will lead private-sector entities to do so; they should also look at giving subsidies to farmers.
Building new roads and repairing old ones is all well and good. However, what most care about is how much money they earn, how much they spend on essential goods and services, and how much they have left with them after all their monthly financial obligations have been met (if, indeed, they have/can be met).
PATRICK GALLIMORE