No one can refute the fact that life is becoming harder by the day. We have to dig deeper into our pockets in order to make ends meet. In addition, the value of money is diminishing every other day. To get a better understanding of how the cost of living has gone up, it is beneficial to consider the following examples:
· Fuel Prices:-World fuel prices are always rising. This means that people have to spend more on fuel. Manufacturers, distributors or transporters will pass the additional cost to the final consumer. Furthermore, the consumer also has to spend more money fueling the vehicle or running other equipment such as generators.
· Cost of Food: — A lot has been said about food insecurity. The population is growing while the food sources are somewhat stagnated. This means that the population has to fight for the limited food reserves. Additionally, climate and weather patterns have changed. This is affecting agricultural production hence lowering the yields.
· Shopping Expenses: — Part of living entails shopping for groceries, clothing, and other items. However, although the items remain the same, people are spending more money. This has forced people to come up with money saving initiatives. These include using shopping vouchers, buying foodstuffs direct from the source, and also minimizing the trips made to the grocery store.
· Leisure & Entertainment:-More money is being spent when going to the movie theatre or cinema hall. This happens when purchasing the tickets, driving to the venue, or buying the snacks. This probably explains why more people are finding it cost effective to rent a movie and watch it at home.
The volatile economy, market slump, and diminishing opportunities to make money are some of the main causes of the increase in cost of living. Unfortunately, from the look of things, this scenario is not about to change soon. Therefore, a consumer has no option but to tighten his belt. This entails looking at ways in which he may reduce costs.
Originally published at www.swrm2012.org on March 28, 2014.
