COMMENT | Domestic Trade, Co-operatives and Consumerism Minister Hamzah Zainudin has a lot to learn about basic economics, especially when it involves the retail business.

No business entity would consider downsizing or totally shutting down an outlet unless it is not able to rake in the desired profit.

Recently, Giant had to close some of its outlets as part of the company’s rationalisation programme, and this is the only logical thing to do when the company is performing badly.

One would expect at least Hamzah to be more knowledgeable than someone than the likes of Federal Territories Minister Tengku Adnan Tengku Mansor, who is already well-known for his bizarre comments, when it comes to assessing the economy or explaining why Giant had to close some outlets.

Sadly, even Hamzah is acting like the emperor in Hans Christian Andersen's short tale. Pretending that he was wearing the most expensive gown sewn by his best tailor in the country, the emperor failed to realise that he was naked when the rest of the world could see it.

From the layperson’s viewpoint, the country’s economy has lost its direction.

The real property market is soft. Developers are going after the same group of people with cash. Rental income has gone down a lot in the past few years. Prices of basic necessities have gone up, pushing up the cost of living in Malaysia...