You're not looking at the whole picture.
You don't buy lots of cooking oil, but bear in mind that majority of the meals you eat outside in restaurants use cooking oil. Food prices will increase.
If sugar price increase, most drinks will also increase in price. Bread, and lots of food has sugar as ingredients.
Do you still remember what happened when the petrol price shot up last year? Removing the fuel subsidy will cause inflation across all industries due to increase transportation costs.
Problem is, are our salaries increasing fast enough? NO! That's why the subsidies cannot be removed just like that. It has to be removed sloooooowly.

---

Added on October 25, 2009, 3:24 pm

No.
1 month RM100 = 1 year RM1,200.
30 years = RM36,000
Assuming the dividend from EPF is the same as inflation rate.
So.. when you retire 30 years later, you will have the purchasing power of RM36,000 today. How many years can you live on this Rm36k?

Definitely agreed 
In the old days, only the husband works.
Then, both husband and wife work.
Now, both husband and wife work 2 jobs each.
In the future, our children will study during the day, and work during the night to help support the family.

simplesmile,

Learn how to use Excel to calculate.  It is not hard.

=FV(0.04/12, (30*12),-100)

Assuming 4% dividend rate.

You get

$69,000 after 30 years.
epalbee3,

As far as I can see, many people are retired in Klang.
simplesmile,

For most 2 incomes' family, the SECOND LOWER INCOME does not provide positive NET INCOME to the family.
epalbee3,

My family of 4 only spend RM2,000 per month.  And, this is true for the past 4 to 5 years. And, we SPENT a lot more than our neighbors.  We paid of our car and house.

Most of the expenses are for FRUITS, VEGETABLE, and SEAFOOD.

Folks,

You hang around with WRONG group of people.

If you want to learn how to retire, hang around people that has early retired.

A) Many families that I know save 50+% of their gross income.

B) My brother and sister are RETIRED before 50.

C) Many people that I know are retired or semi-retired (work for fun only)

The ONLY CONSTANT for all of them is they are FRUGAL.

Dreamer

epalbee3,

1) I live in Klang.  I do not believe the cost of living is much lower than Seremban.

<<RM2000 is not enough for car and house,>>

2) Car and house are paid off.  And, usually, at retirement, the car and house had been paid off.

<<Ok, hang around with which group of people depends on which job you are in.>>

3) Who say you MUST hang around the same group of people after work??

<<however, sometimes there is no choice for that.. >>

4) You ALWAYS have a choice.  Now, as too whether you exercise that choice is up to you.

Dreamer