The Impact of the COVID-19 Pandemic on the Cost of Living of the B40 Group: An Analysis of Income, Expenditure, and Targeted Assistance

Abstract

The Klang Valley is a developed area in line with economic development, which significantly contributes to the increase in the price of goods and services. The cost of living based on income and expenses has become a hot topic among people, either during or after the COVID-19 pandemic, especially the less well-off, namely B40. The continuous increase in the price of goods in recent years has impacted this group. Therefore, this study aims to identify the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on the cost of living B40, which involves issues of income, expenditure, and targeted assistance. The research methodology uses a quantitative approach by employing a questionnaire as its instrument to 650 respondents of the B40 group in the Klang Valley using the Mann-Whitney U and Kruskal-Wallis H tests. The study results found that the B40 group was affected, and some were not affected during the COVID-19 pandemic, involving the cost of living issue, life, and help obtained. This is because the increase in the price of goods and low income causes this group to take thrifty measures and survive with little savings. In this study, it was found that the level of survival of this group was also affected, and most of the respondents acted thrifty by buying low-quality goods and prioritising only essential goods. Therefore, in this situation, the government needs to provide targeted assistance to reduce the burden and ensure that the price of goods can be bought and owned even after the COVID-19 pandemic hits the nation.