The Department of Finance under UTAR Faculty of Business and Finance (FBF) successfully organised a webinar titled Is Government Debt Good or Bad for Economic Growth on 10 June 2022 via VooV Meeting.

Attended by more than 100 staff and students from DongGuan City University alongside nine UTAR staff and students, the webinar aimed to enlighten the participants on the real understanding of the public debt of the government and how debt affects the economic growth of a nation.

The talk was delivered by UTAR Department of Finance lecturer Dr Tan Ai Lian. She explained, “The nexus between government debt and economic growth has been a topical issue that debates forcefully in the economic circle. Over the last few decades, the rise in government debt has drawn great attention from most countries worldwide. In the past historical evidence, an astonishing growth of government debt in emerging and developing countries has resulted in indebtedness in the 1980s and 1990s. Nevertheless, the predicament of high debt accumulation is not merely experienced by less developed countries, it has flown to the side of stronger and sounder advanced economies, especially in the aftermath of the global financial crisis in 2007-2008 and the outbreak of Covid-19. Against this background, should a country raise the financing resources by borrowing and what are the effects of government debt on economic growth?”

The webinar was also attended by Deputy Dean of School of Finance and Trade of DongGuan City University Hou Rui Hui and UTAR FBF Dean Assoc Prof Dr Au Yong Hui Nee.

Additionally, the Department of Finance also organised another online talk for DongGuan City University staff and students on 4 July 2022 via VooV Meeting. Attended by more than 180 staff and students from DongGuan City University and around 100 UTAR staff and students, the talk titled Industry Analysis and Computer Analysis was delivered by FBF lecturer Adi Wira bin Mohd Zin.

The talk covered areas, such as Michael Porter’s Five Forces, Industry Types and the Opportunities They Offer, Collecting Competitive Intelligence and Competitive Analysis Grid.

In his talk, Adi explained, “After a preliminary research is undertaken towards the business idea, a more in-depth research is required to determine whether it is accessible to enter the business. To understand the attractiveness of the business venture, one needs to understand the industry structure to see the potential opportunities and as well threats. One method to understand the industry is by looking at the five forces model which explains the substitution threat, new entrants of new players, the rivalry of existing players, bargaining power of suppliers as well as the bargaining power of buyers. Once you understood its attractiveness and threat, you can decide the area of focus or concentration towards the business and you can specifically notice the potential customers.”

He added, “However, it is not done there as one needs to study the behaviour of competitors to secure sales from the customer. Understanding the competitors can be done through ethical investigation such as attending conferences, buying competitor products or directly asking their customers. This information is really helpful in preparing the competitive analysis grid, a table to compare one’s business strengths and weaknesses to competitors to prepare a strategy to gain sales advantage from competitors.”