Try out this game on why do countries trade.
http://nobelprize.org/educational_games/economics/trade/

Read up on why some countries are restricting trade (protectionism) and why some economists are against protectionism.

Try out the following exercise, assumming different roles in arguments to increase or reduce tariffsfor the Car industry in Malaysia:
http://geocities.com/olevelecons/tradeorprotect.doc

The ASEAN Trade agreement call for Malaysia to reduce tariffs in its car industry.
Provide the arguments for and against the reduction of tariffs for the car industry in Malaysia.

Check out the HDI for the different countries :
http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/statistics/

Select a country below to see how its HDI relates to its GDP and how it compares to another country.
http://hdr.undp.org/hdr2006/statistics/flash/statistics_hdi.cfm

Listen to all these audio recordings from Bized:

The Economic Problem [2MB]
Opportunity Cost [2MB]
Public and Private Sectors: Part 1 [3MB]
Public and Private Sectors: Part 2 [2.5MB]
Economic Systems - Introduction [1.2MB]
Economic Systems - Command, or Planned, Economy [2.8MB]
Economic Systems - Market Economy [3.3MB]
Economic Systems - Mixed Economy [483KB]
Location of Industry 1 [1.2MB]
Location of Industry 2 [1.2MB]
Location of Industry 3 [1.2MB]

Podcast is getting quite popular nowadays - what do you think of this from Bized? The recordings are in MP3 format and many polytechnics and even JCs are trying this out as many students own a MP3 player nowadays. Would you like to receive the podcast on the topics that you are studying? Would you want to be involved in the production of a podcast?

Try this simple exercise on demand and supply - I like the fact that it shows you how the demand and supply curve shift on the right hand side.
http://ecedweb.unomaha.edu/Dem_Sup/econqui2.htm

Something for you to think about:

Tax all equally, but... February 07, 2007

Why it works: The extra GST revenue, amounting to $1.5 billion annually, will be used to fund areas like education, health care and transportation. It will also enable the Government to cut corporate taxes to draw more investors.
The Government has promised a 'comprehensive offset package' to help the needy.

Why it may not work: The GST is a regressive tax. While the rich may not feel the pinch of the hike, every dollar counts for the needy. The higher cost of living will hit the poor harder. GST will always be with us but the offsets might not last, argue critics.

Source: http://newpaper.asia1.com.sg/news/story/0,4136,122804,00.html?

Points to think about:

1. Reasons for the increase in GST.

2. How does it help the government to achieve its aims?

3. What is a regressive tax?

4. Why would be people worried about the increment in GST?

5. Do you think the incidence of tax will be more on the producers or the consumers?

6. What are the safety measures which the government can adapt to cushion the adverse impact of the increment in GST?

Hong Kong enjoys low rates of both personal and corporate taxation. Concerned at the territory's narrow tax base and the government's over-dependence on tax revenue from property transactions, the government is consulting the public on the proposed introduction of a Goods and Services Tax (GST). Initial popular reaction has been largely unfavourable, primarily because of concerns that it will impose an undue burden on the poorer members of society, and may also harm Hong Kong's attractiveness as a tourist destination.

source: Extract from http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hong_Kong

*In a surprising about turn, the Hong Kong government announced on 5 Dec 2006 that it will abandon plans for a goods and services tax in the face of widespread public hostility to the idea.

1. Name the four types of taxes mentioned in the above source and classify them under direct or indirect tax.

2. What are the demerits of the Goods and Services tax as mentioned in the passage?

3. What other demerits do the Goods and Services tax have other than those mentioned in the extract?

4. Why do you think the Hong Kong Government wanted to introduce the goods and services tax?

Though the deadline for the essay writing competition based on the above theme is over, I would like you to comment on the following:

1. What do you think are the key challenges facing Singapore in the foreseeable future (e.g. social, economic, security)? What kinds of spending needs arise from this?

2. With no natural resources and limited revenue sources, how would you prioritise these spending needs? What can we spend less on in order to meet these increased spending needs?

3. How should Singapore find the revenue to fund our future spending needs (e.g. raising taxes – if so, what type)? Are there other alternative sources of revenue you think should be explored? What are the implications of funding our expenditure through such means?

Try out this game on budget 2007 - If you were the finance minister:
http://app.mof.gov.sg/budget_2007/choice/index.asp

In the game you are to:
1. Tell us how much you would allocate for each aspect of our public expenditure.
2. Decide how you would raise the revenue to finance these expenditure items.

All countries face tough choices in fiscal policy. Like most choices in life, fiscal choices have their own set of tradeoffs, i.e. costs and benefits. Higher taxes lower household incomes but allow the Government to provide more for the less privileged. Lower taxes increase our business competitiveness but may undermine the Government’s ability to provide adequately for its citizens. Each choice taken also impacts current and future generations differently. Are our taxes too high? Where can we look to for more revenue to meet budgetary shortfalls?
There are no perfect choices. Each country decides based on its own circumstances, beliefs and values.

I hope that you will understand the role of the government much better after playing the game.Please add to comment after you have tried the game.

Let's discuss the latest economic issues here! Participate actively in commenting the issues which I will be posting here.