Old papers worth less now

Times are harder for the karang guni or rag-and-bone men, who collect old newspapers, clothes and electrical items. As a result of recycling, there is a worldwide excess of waste paper. This means the price of waste paper has fallen. The karung guni men are hard-hit and some don't even pay for the newspapers they now collect.

MR Chng Thiam Soon, 39, a karung guni (rag-and-bone) man, finds that his pay packet has shrinked since the recent fall in the price of old newspapers.

"On good days, I could earn about $130 to $140, when the price of newspapers was higher. Now, I earn only about $40 to $50 a day," he lamented.

He said he used to pay 5 cents for a kg of old newspapers, and sell them for 25 cents a kg, giving him a profit of 20 cents a kg. He used to make up to $110 a day just on newspapers.

But now, he pays 2 cents for 1 kg of papers, and sells them at 5 cents a kg. He makes only $20 a day from old newspapers.

As a result, he has had to cut down on his smoking. "I used to spend a lot on cigarettes. But now, I smoke a lot less. I’m down from three packs of cigarettes to one pack a day," he said.

Mr Chng, a bachelor, also supports his 60-year-old mother on his income. They live in an HDB flat in Outram.

Mr Chng has been a karung guni man for more than 10 years. He begins his rounds of the housing estates around People’s Park and Kreta Ayer in Chinatown every morning at nine, and ends his day at 4 pm. He doesn’t work when it rains.

He collects old newspapers and clothing. Occasionally, he also buys over broken-down appliances such as TV sets, hi-fi sets and video cassette recorders.

He buys old clothing at 20 cents a kg and sells it at 40 cents a kg. His income from this source varies from week to week.

Television sets, video cassette recorders and hi-fi sets bring in more money, but he can pick up only about five such items a month.

All the used items are sold to dealers in waste paper, rags and second-hand goods.

Current prices for used items, compared to three years ago, according to Lianhe Zaobao:

ANOTHER karung guni man, Mr Toh Thiam Seng, 35, said his earnings have fallen from $3,000 to $1,000 a month.

"I used to be able to earn $100 to $200 a day. But now, with the fall in the price of paper, I only earn $50 or less every day.

"In the past, I could make $80 to $100 from a tonne of newspapers (enough to fill an ordinary-sized pick-up).

"Now I make $30 or less. Newspapers are so bulky and heavy. And now, with such low prices, it is a waste of effort to transport them around."

Mr Toh has been collecting items such as video cassette recorders, TV sets and old clothing to supplement his income.

He makes between $50 to $90 on every video cassette recorder and $100 to $170 for every TV set, depending on the brand and condition.

Mr Toh is married. His wife is 32, and they have a one-year-old daughter. The family lives in Jurong West.

As a result of his smaller pay packet, he said: "We try not to make unnecessary trips in the truck to save petrol. I also buy fewer 4-D tickets," he said.

ABOUT half of the 20 residents in Bedok South and Eunos Crescent HDB estates interviewed yesterday are facing a mounting problem.

They have stacks of newspapers piling up in their homes because their neighbourhood karung guni man won’t pick them up unless he is offered other second-hand goods.

Mr Tan Kim Sai, 65, a retiree who lives in Bedok South, complained: "One karung guni man came by this morning, but he refused to accept my pile of papers. He wanted only old clothes, but I didn’t have any.

"It is dangerous to keep so many papers in a small flat — it’s a fire hazard."

Other residents say they have to cajole or "bribe" the karung guni man by offering old clothes and other more profitable items before he will agree to take the papers away.

Madam Lee Guat Meng, a 65-year-old housewife who lives in Eunos Crescent, said in Mandarin: "If I don’t give him old clothes or an old radio, he won’t take the newspapers away."

ANOTHER Eunos Crescent resident, Madam Wong Ah Hua, 76, said the karung guni man stopped making his rounds in her estate a few months ago.

"We stack up the newspapers in the house until there is no more space, then we throw them into the dustbin," she said in Mandarin.

For residents in Bedok South, the karung guni men who come by do collect old newspapers — but pay rock-bottom prices.

For Mr Lim Kwee Soon, 70, a retiree who lives in Bedok South, the karung guni man pays him 2 cents per kg of old newspapers.

"It’s a very low price, but at least the karung guni man is willing to buy them. He told me it is not profitable to pick up newspapers."