Politik Buku

MillionIdeazKid

MPH: No signs of book prices falling


July 21 2006


SINCE the ringgit peg in 1998, the prices of imported books and magazines have increased as much as threefold.
According to Lua Chun Pin, the general manager of operations for MPH Bookstores Sdn Bhd, there are no signs that prices will head downwards.


"A paperback retailing at RM19.90 in the early 1990s is now retailing at RM32.90, which is an increase of about 40 per cent.


"In the last nine years, the high costs of printing materials and transportation have affected the publishing industry. Insurance for freight charges have also risen drastically after 9/11 (attacks on the US on September 11 2001)," he added.


Lua said that at one point, a subsidy was offered to MPH Bookstores by academic publishers as Malaysia was considered a developing country and the developed world wanted to help increase readership in the country.


But the withdrawal by the academic publishers for student-adopted texts later on caused the prices of professional books to shoot up by almost 100 per cent.


"The prices of the books and magazines are not dictated by MPH Bookstores, but by the publishers. The pricing is controlled whereby there is a ceiling on the retail price. Prices have not dropped yet," said Lua.


He said that since the ringgit depeg was not that far back, its impact on the pricing of books may only be felt later on.


The publishers and their distributors may or may not reduce the prices of books and magazines as they have other factors to look into.


"They may look at the pricing, but only marginally, if, and when, the rates come down further," Lua said.


He added that the increase in fuel prices and the cost of living had affected readership. Measures taken by the company to soften the negative impact of higher prices include working with the Government to inculcate the reading habit among Malaysians.

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hrga buku pun mcm harga minyak gak. xpernah turun, selalu naik. buku diskaun cuma promosi saja..spt juga promosi2  di stesen petrol...sekali bubuh minyak 50rm dpt sebotol air mineral.tp harga tetap x berubah. kalo pun buku murah... yg outdated punya lah.yg bila kita baca ,kepala kita pon akn jd biol.

mereka yg terlibat dlm books biz boleh bagi sejuta satu alasan knp harga perlu dinaikkan. jd terletak kpd kita lah...kalo kita kuat dan bersatu..kita boleh demand reasonable price..tp kita xkuat...x spt kesatuan pekerja.mereka bersatu. hinggakan kjaan pun trpksa akur dgn mereka..wpun x semua tuntutan mereka dipenuhi,skrg2nya mereka ada kuasa penentu pasaran. tp sbg pembaca...kita bukan kuasa penentu pasaran.

galakan supaya rakyat membaca..sbnrnya amat disokong dan mengembirakan  mereka yg trlibat dlm book biz..tp adakah ikhlas...atau sekadar untuk mengaut keuntungan berlipat kali ganda dr kita.

nmpknya buku pon ada politiknya yg tersendiri.

lady_nF

itu laa
mahal gile buku kat malaysia nih
but i heard kalo beli buku nih boleh mintak tax exempt

intan

Originally posted by lady_nF at 21-7-2006 05:11 PM
itu laa
mahal gile buku kat malaysia nih
but i heard kalo beli buku nih boleh mintak tax exempt

yup...simpan saja resit pembelian dan masukkan kat bahagian potonngan lain2 kat borang tax tu...

lows^man^lyrics

Originally posted by lady_nF at 21-7-2006 05:11 PM
itu laa
mahal gile buku kat malaysia nih
but i heard kalo beli buku nih boleh mintak tax exempt

what do u mean by tax exemption?

seribulan

buying books can get tax exemption...for about RM800 of worth
rasanya...my case selalu terlupa jer nak include bila buat tax...or
simpan resitnye...dah ilang ntah kemana...

noraidil_06

i compile semua resit beli buku n magazine, worth jugak utk tax exemption. even beli kat stall tepi jalan i will ask for resit. bila nak declare tax, i will give it to my account clerk n let she decide which of the resit.

appropos

the main reason nowdays i mainly buy secondhand books and read ebooks:bgrin::bgrin:

redsinner

kalo kat aussie llaaaagi mahal.

tapi i think sbb currency xchange lebe kurang ar kot.

paperback kecik dalam AUD14.90 , pastu darabla approx 3

still besyukur kat mesia cume RM32.90