- 2004.07.15
After a two-year price freeze, the spiral in school textbook expenditure may again be on the rise. Already, the annual price survey of the Consumer Council has shown increases on average of 1.8% and 1.5% in the primary and secondary school textbooks respectively. With the exception of the past two years 2002 and 2003 when prices remained unchanged with even some slight decline, textbook prices on average had continued to rise unabated in the annual surveys of the Council since the 80s. The survey this year, based on the price information of 262 primary school textbooks and 390 secondary school textbooks, again recorded increases in both sectors, bringing to a halt a welcome two-year relief in rising textbook expenditure for parents and students. For the primary sector, higher price increases were found in the subjects English Language (2.3%), Chinese Language (2.3%), and Mathematics (2.1%). For the secondary sector, the subjects with higher price increases included English Language (3.7%), and Chemistry (3.2%). The increases took place against a decline in Composite CPI which was on average 2.4% lower than in the preceding 12-month period. Some publishers have attributed the price hike this year to the following: Increase in costs in paper, transportation and the production of IT teaching aids (that come as accessories to textbooks). But the printing cost has remained unchanged with some printers admitting that it in fact dropped by 5% to 15%. Textbook publishers, however, maintained that there had been no adjustment in the printing cost and, further, many of the supplementary teaching aids were provided free to schools without cost recovery. Decrease in the number of students, hence a lower demand which has the effect of driving up the unit cost of textbooks due to economies of scale. The publishers also gave as a reason for the price increase that they were not allowed sufficient time to publish textbooks in compliance with the curriculum reform, and this had resulted in an increase in manpower and cost. But the Education and Manpower Bureau (EMB) commented that on average, publishers should have 12 to 14 months for publishing new textbooks, and in view of today's IT and publishing technology, publishers should have enough time for the task. In response, textbook publishers noted that in most cases, the time was less than 12 to 14 months from the time of the curriculum being consulted or finalised. In the publishing industry, the most important factor is human resource. To make up for the lack of time, more human resources will be needed and, hence, the rise in cost. The EMB also reiterated that it has published "Guidelines for Printing Textbooks", advising publishers to make use of printing methods with low cost features such as using less costly paper. Further, teaching aids should be treated as separate items from textbooks and priced accordingly for the purchase of schools in need. Meanwhile, parents and students are advised to be wary of bookstores which offer discount of 20% for the sales of new textbooks. Normally, publishers will give a 20% discount on the marked price of the textbooks to retailers who, in turn, may offer to consumers a discount of 5% to 10% in order to make a profit. Consumers will do well to be sceptical of shops offering a big discount. Unless you are dealing with a highly reliable bookshop, do not make a downpayment first and collect the books later. Pay on delivery is more advisable. The Consumer Council reserves all its right (including copyright) in respect of CHOICE Magazine and Online CHOICE ( https://echoice.consumer.org.hk/ ).