Photo credit: The New York Public Library/Unsplash Unless you have been living under a rock, you would notice that GST had gone up from 7% to 8% with effect from 1 Jan 2023. The impact of GST hike is significant because it affects almost every facet of our everyday life. Unsurprisingly, many merchants and retailers pushed out “Beat the GST Hike” promotion during the year-end period to drive up sales. Were these genuine promotions or mere marketing gimmicks? Now that it has been a month into the new year and Singaporeans generally getting accustomed to the increase in consumption tax, I like to highlight some of the poor/irrational financial decisions that I have observed. WHAT ARE “BEAT THE GST HIKE” PROMOTIONS? “BEAT the GST” promotion refers to sales campaigns that are designed to encourage consumers to make their purchases before the increase in GST comes into effect. They are usually run by merchandisers selling big-ticket items such as furniture and electrical appliances....