The Lunar New Year is nearly upon us. This is a time of year that abounds with lucky phrases and decorations meant to bring in prosperity. But, as a recent survey has found, prosperity is far from guaranteed.
During the Lunar New Year, adults hand out red packets filled with cash to their children and their parents. For analysts, the amount that the average person is able to hand out in a given year is a handy indicator of how the average person is doing financially. This year, the signs aren’t great
A survey by job bank yes123 shows that while 55% of people will be able to give out the same amount they did last year, 28% will have to scale back, many of them because of higher living expenses or a lack of a raise at work. Meanwhile, 63% said they are strapped for cash ahead of this year’s holiday, with significant numbers saying they will have to borrow from parents or take on extra part-time work to fill their envelopes with money.
The Lunar New Year abounds with symbols meant to bring in the money, from oranges to representations of coins and the god of wealth himself. But this year, at least, none of these seems to have done the trick.