Ever since an economics professor wrote a book in Chinese on selling tangerine plants at a Lunar New Year bazaar some years ago, it has become popular for students and teachers to bid for stalls at Lunar New Year bazaars. The main argument for such an activity is that students can learn how to run a business, and their experience will help their studies and personal development.

Let's consider some of the economics involved to see whether this is really appropriate for students. First, it requires organizational skills and business acumen to decide what to do with the bazaar stalls in terms of cost, products to sell and a marketing strategy. Business skills are required. However, one wonders how much secondary and post-secondary school students will really benefit from this. Consider the costs: Students may not have any capital to bid for a stall, and often the money comes from their parents. The first lesson is that they have to have some subsidies or "free capital" to spend. Also, the goods they sell are mainly sourced from the Chinese mainland. Although there are different varieties, they are mainly fashionable toys and products not relevant to the Lunar New Year.

The time involved in organization is another concern. Will this affect their normal study time? One can see students engaged full-time in running stalls close to the Lunar New year. But this is more like "peer-group play time" than a genuine attempt to learn about business. Often, one reads from newspaper reports that the stalls make losses, or the "profits" may not even cover the opportunity cost - as the students probably worked without pay. In other words, "play" is what they gain and "pay" is what they lose. That students are running bazaar stalls before the Lunar New Year means they will not have time to stay at home, help their parents, or help with New Year activities. The social cost is that their parents have "lost" their children during a time when they are most needed.

The Lunar New Year bazaar is traditionally an important market for tree or seasonal plants growers and owners. Many are elderly couples from the New Territories. Their businesses are quite risky as the weather during the New Year may affect them. Thus, their revenue is not certain, and the bazaar is an important way for them to make money. But with the entry of students at the bazaar stalls, the price of the stalls is pushed up as demand for them rises. Hence, while the students are "learning a business", conventional stall bidders face higher costs. Life for these people becomes more difficult. They face new challenges and unnecessary competition.

This is one of the undisclosed social costs when students bid for bazaar stalls. Perhaps a real life example will illustrate my point. Some years ago, I walked around the "flower market" in the Mongkok East area one evening just before Lunar New Year. There were plenty of people shopping for seasonal flowers. In one quiet corner, I noticed a young boy selling flowers, but he was half-asleep. I enquired about the price and during the conversation he told me he had not slept for a long time because he had to help his mother sell flowers. I was moved by his story and decided to buy the flowers from him. The point is that the Lunar New Year should be the occasion for families getting together and for helping each other.

Yes, we need to help each other. And it is definitely fun for students to organize bazaar stalls. But think of the opportunity cost and economic consequences. I hope the next generation of students, and teachers will have a more realistic attitude to running bazaar stalls.

The author is associate professor of the Department of Economics and Finance at City University of Hong Kong.

(HK Edition 02/12/2014 page1)