Post GST - Most brand new cars are cheaper. And recipe for homemade Latte

Today my family and I shopped for groceries at Jaya Grocer over at the Empire Gallery in Subang Jaya. Out of the RM100.00 we spent rm4.00 was GST (RM67.59 was GST applicable, the rest zero GST). So GST has basically cost us either half a Beijing Cabbage or almost ten raw eggs or a can of Campbell's mushroom soup. Not much, but since we usually shop for groceries at least once a week there is a slight increase in our household spending. Boo-hoo. 



But let's not dwell on RM4.00+. I suppose I will just cut down on at least one cup of Starbucks coffee (or the equivalent) every month and things would be back to normal. It's not that I cannot get good coffee at home in the first place these days as I personally buy good coffee and make it at home. So before I continue about how GST is affecting the prices of cars here in Malaysia let me give you a tip on how to make decent Cafe Latte equivalent without an espresso machine. Make latte at home and save some money.

 1. Try making double-strong coffee in an ordinary coffee pot
2.  Then pour some milk in a jar, leaving it half empty. Seal it tightly and shake until the milk is foamy, then          remove the lid and microwave until hot.
3.  Pour the coffee into a mug - buy one from Starbucks to make it look authentic. Make sure to leave                enough for your frothy milk.Usually this means almost half or depending on how strong you want your            coffee to be.
4.  Add the milk. Gently pour the milk into the mug, keeping the foam in the saucepan or jar with a spoon.          Once most of the milk has been poured into the mug, layer the milk foam over the top.

This should work. Of course being cheap means some extra work okay.

Anyway, cars in general are CHEAPER because of GST. In every brand new car sold in Malaysia it is first subjected to excise taxes which could be from as low as 40% to 300% depending on the type of vehicle. After that excise duty is added, there was a 10% sales tax added over and above this. Now, with the implementation of GST, 10% sales tax is replaced with a lesser 6% tax. Hence the cheaper prices overall.

But some cars prices have remained the same - like the Kia Picanto or risen, like the Toyota Vios (RM36.46 to RM131.77 for most models except the Vios J which goes down by RM164.10 - So buy the Vios J and not the other models if you want that incredibly normal car that everyone drives).

Some of the luxury cars have it good. The Mercedes Benz E300 Bluetec Hybrid gets a RM10,000 lower price. I imagine that if I bought that, I could use the RM10,000 to buy a Tudor Heritage Black Bay. A nice diver's watch. Oh wait, that would now have GST added and it won't be sold at RM10,000 anymore. Darn. It's now RM10,600.00. Better make more latte at home to afford that watch then.

Note - If you guys out there want to know exact price drops or increases post GST, head over -to -http://www.carlist.my/news/post-gst-mercedes-benz-malaysia-drops-prices-rm10000-its-range/9643 I think they've got it pretty much covered. This, is my analysis.