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The economy of Singapore is a highly developed
free-market economy A market economy is an economic system in which the decisions regarding investment, production and distribution to the consumers are guided by the price signals created by the forces of supply and demand, where all suppliers and consumers are ...
with dirigiste characteristics.
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...
's economy has been previously ranked as the most open in the world, the joint 4th-least corrupt, and the most pro-business. Singapore has low tax-rates and the second-highest per-capita GDP in the world in terms of purchasing power parity (PPP). The
Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation The Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC ) is an inter-governmental forum for 21 member economy, economies in the Pacific Rim that promotes free trade throughout the Asia-Pacific region.
(APEC) is headquartered in Singapore. Alongside the
business Business is the practice of making one's living or making money by producing or buying and selling products (such as goods and services). It is also "any activity or enterprise entered into for profit." Having a business name does not separ ...
-friendly reputation for global and local
privately held companies A privately held company (or simply a private company) is a company whose shares and related rights or obligations are not offered for public subscription or publicly negotiated in the respective listed markets, but rather the company's stock is ...
and
public companies A public company is a company whose ownership is organized via shares of stock which are intended to be freely traded on a stock exchange or in over-the-counter markets. A public (publicly traded) company can be listed on a stock exchange (list ...
, various national
state-owned enterprise A state-owned enterprise (SOE) is a government entity which is established or nationalised by the ''national government'' or ''provincial government'' by an executive order or an act of legislation in order to earn profit for the governmen ...
s play a substantial role in Singapore's economy. The
sovereign wealth fund A sovereign wealth fund (SWF), sovereign investment fund, or social wealth fund is a state-owned investment fund that invests in real and financial assets such as stocks, bonds, real estate, precious metals, or in alternative investments such as ...
Temasek Holdings Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited, or simply Temasek, is a Singaporean state holding company owned by the Government of Singapore. Incorporated on 25 June 1974, Temasek owns and manages a total of US$496.59 billion (S$671 billion) in assets u ...
holds majority stakes in several of the nation's largest
bellwether A bellwether is a leader or an indicator of trends.bellwether
" ''Cambridge Dictionary''. Ret ...
companies, such as
Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines ( abbreviation: SIA) is the flag carrier airline of the Republic of Singapore with its hub located at Singapore Changi Airport. The airline is notable for highlighting the Singapore Girl as its central figure in corporat ...
,
SingTel Singapore Telecommunications Limited, commonly known as Singtel, is a Singaporean telecommunications conglomerate and one of the four major telcos operating in the country. The company is the largest mobile network operator in Singapore with ...
,
ST Engineering Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd, doing business as ST Engineering, is a Singaporean multinational technology and engineering group in the aerospace, smart city as well as defence and public security sectors. Headquartered in Singapore, ...
and
MediaCorp Mediacorp Pte. Ltd., doing business as Mediacorp and stylised as mediacorp, is a media conglomerate in Singapore. Owned by Temasek Holdings—the holding company of the Government of Singapore—it owns television, radio, and digital media prope ...
. With regards to
foreign direct investment A foreign direct investment (FDI) is an investment in the form of a controlling ownership in a business in one country by an entity based in another country. It is thus distinguished from a foreign portfolio investment by a notion of direct c ...
(FDI), the Singaporean economy is a major FDI outflow-financier in the world. In addition, throughout its history, Singapore has benefited from the large inward flows of FDI from global
investors An investor is a person who allocates financial capital with the expectation of a future return (profit) or to gain an advantage (interest). Through this allocated capital most of the time the investor purchases some species of property. Type ...
,
financial institutions Financial institutions, sometimes called banking institutions, are business entities that provide services as intermediaries for different types of financial monetary transactions. Broadly speaking, there are three major types of financial insti ...
and
multinational corporations A multinational company (MNC), also referred to as a multinational enterprise (MNE), a transnational enterprise (TNE), a transnational corporation (TNC), an international corporation or a stateless corporation with subtle but contrasting senses, i ...
(MNCs) due to its highly attractive investment climate along with a stable and conducive political environment throughout its modern years. Singapore relies on an extended concept of intermediary trade to
entrepôt An ''entrepôt'' (; ) or transshipment port is a port, city, or trading post where merchandise may be imported, stored, or traded, usually to be exported again. Such cities often sprang up and such ports and trading posts often developed into c ...
trade, by purchasing raw goods and refining them for re-export in order to sustain its high levels of
export-oriented industrialization Export-oriented industrialization (EOI) sometimes called export substitution industrialization (ESI), export led industrialization (ELI) or export-led growth is a trade and economic policy aiming to speed up the industrialization process of a ...
, such as in the wafer-fabrication industry and in
oil refining An oil refinery or petroleum refinery is an industrial process plant where petroleum (crude oil) is transformed and refined into useful products such as gasoline (petrol), diesel fuel, asphalt base, fuel oils, heating oil, kerosene, liquefi ...
. Singapore has a strategic port which makes it more competitive than many of its neighbours in carrying out such entrepôt activities. Singapore's
trade-to-GDP ratio The trade-to-GDP ratio is an indicator of the relative importance of international trade in the economy of a country. It is calculated by dividing the aggregate value of imports and exports over a period by the gross domestic product for the s ...
is among the highest in the world, as of 2020 the ratio was 320%. The
Port of Singapore The Port of Singapore refers to the collective facilities and terminals that conduct maritime trade and handles Singapore's harbours and shipping. It has been ranked as the top maritime capital of the world since 2015. Currently the world's se ...
is the second-busiest in the world by cargo tonnage and is the busiest transshipment port in the world. Singapore is also a regional, continental and global hub for the management and operations of various MNCs, because of its strategic location in close proximity with other
Asia-Pacific Asia-Pacific (APAC) is the part of the world near the western Pacific Ocean. The Asia-Pacific region varies in area depending on context, but it generally includes East Asia, Russian Far East, South Asia, Southeast Asia, Australia and Paci ...
markets, along with its advanced connectivity and
infrastructure Infrastructure is the set of facilities and systems that serve a country, city, or other area, and encompasses the services and facilities necessary for its economy, households and firms to function. Infrastructure is composed of public and priv ...
(
airline hub An airline hub or hub airport is an airport used by one or more airlines to concentrate passenger traffic and flight operations. Hubs serve as transfer (or stop-over) points to help get passengers to their final destination. It is part of the ...
and maritime port with a diverse array of destinations, Gigabit
fiber-optic communications Fiber-optic communication is a method of transmitting information from one place to another by sending pulses of infrared light through an optical fiber. The light is a form of carrier wave that is modulated to carry information. Fiber is pre ...
, efficient
road transport Road transport or road transportation is a type of transport using roads. Transport on roads can be roughly grouped into the transportation of goods and transportation of people. In many countries licensing requirements and safety regulations ...
and
public transport Public transport (also known as public transportation, public transit, mass transit, or simply transit) is a system of transport for passengers by group travel systems available for use by the general public unlike private transport, typi ...
) and its immigration policies in welcoming global talent. In addition, Singapore is a popular international
tourist destination A tourist attraction is a place of interest that tourists visit, typically for its inherent or an exhibited natural or cultural value, historical significance, natural or built beauty, offering leisure and amusement. Types Places of natural ...
for various types of
tourism Tourism is travel for pleasure or business; also the theory and practice of touring (disambiguation), touring, the business of attracting, accommodating, and entertaining tourists, and the business of operating tour (disambiguation), tours. Th ...
(
Business tourism Business tourism or business travel is a more limited and focused subset of regular tourism. During business tourism (traveling), individuals are still working and being paid, but are doing so away from both their workplace and home. Some definit ...
, MICE (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences, Exhibitions) tourism,
Medical tourism Medical tourism refers to people traveling abroad to obtain medical treatment. In the past, this usually referred to those who traveled from less-developed countries to major medical centers in highly developed countries for treatment unavailable a ...
,
Urban tourism Urban tourism or also called City tourism is a form of tourism that takes place in the large human agglomerations, usually in the main cities or urban areas of each country. Definition According to the World Tourism Organization (UNWTO), urban t ...
). The country's main exports include
electronics The field of electronics is a branch of physics and electrical engineering that deals with the emission, behaviour and effects of electrons using electronic devices. Electronics uses active devices to control electron flow by amplification ...
,
chemical A chemical substance is a form of matter having constant chemical composition and characteristic properties. Some references add that chemical substance cannot be separated into its constituent elements by physical separation methods, i.e., w ...
s and
services Service may refer to: Activities * Administrative service, a required part of the workload of university faculty * Civil service, the body of employees of a government * Community service, volunteer service for the benefit of a community or a p ...
. Singapore is the regional hub for
wealth management Wealth management (WM) or wealth management advisory (WMA) is an investment advisory service that provides financial management and wealth advisory services to a wide array of clients ranging from affluent to high-net-worth (HNW) and ultra-high ...
. Water is scarce in Singapore and a sizeable percentage of water is imported from Malaysia, therefore it is defined as a precious resource.
Small and medium-sized enterprises Small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs) or small and medium-sized businesses (SMBs) are businesses whose personnel and revenue numbers fall below certain limits. The abbreviation "SME" is used by international organizations such as the World Bank ...
(SMEs) are the backbone of the Singapore's economic landscape. SMEs contribute 43% of Singapore's GDP (S$428 bil) and employ 70% of Singapore's total workforce of 3.35 million. Singapore has limited arable land, meaning that Singapore is heavily reliant on
agrotechnology Agricultural technology or agrotechnology (abbreviated agtech, agritech, AgriTech, or agrotech) is the use of technology in agriculture, horticulture, and aquaculture with the aim of improving yield, efficiency, and profitability. Agricultural tec ...
parks (particularly vertical
hydroponic Hydroponics is a type of horticulture and a subset of hydroculture which involves growing plants, usually crops or medicinal plants, without soil, by using water-based mineral nutrient solutions in aqueous solvents. Terrestrial or aquatic plant ...
farms) for
agricultural production Agriculture or farming is the practice of cultivating plants and livestock. Agriculture was the key development in the rise of sedentary human civilization, whereby farming of domesticated species created food surpluses that enabled people to ...
. As a result, Singapore imports 90% of its food supply and has a wide variety of supplier countries in order to achieve its
food security Food security speaks to the availability of food in a country (or geography) and the ability of individuals within that country (geography) to access, afford, and source adequate foodstuffs. According to the United Nations' Committee on World ...
; Singapore is ranked as among the most food secure in the world. Apart from its strategic location at the cross-roads of
trade Trade involves the transfer of goods and services from one person or entity to another, often in exchange for money. Economists refer to a system or network that allows trade as a market. An early form of trade, barter, saw the direct exc ...
between the East and
the West West is a cardinal direction or compass point. West or The West may also refer to: Geography and locations Global context * The Western world * Western culture and Western civilization in general * The Western Bloc, countries allied with NATO ...
, Singapore has little to no
natural resources Natural resources are resources that are drawn from nature and used with few modifications. This includes the sources of valued characteristics such as commercial and industrial use, aesthetic value, scientific interest and cultural value. ...
, hence
human resources Human resources (HR) is the set of people who make up the workforce of an organization, business sector, industry, or economy. A narrower concept is human capital, the knowledge and skills which the individuals command. Similar terms includ ...
is a pivotal issue for the health of the Singaporean economy; the services and manufacturing sectors of the economy are heavily reliant on a highly- educated and highly-
skilled A skill is the Learning, learned ability to act with determined results with good execution often within a given amount of time, energy, or both. Skills can often be divided into Departmentalization, domain-general and domain-specific skills. Fo ...
'
Professional A professional is a member of a profession or any person who works in a specified professional activity. The term also describes the standards of education and training that prepare members of the profession with the particular knowledge and sk ...
,
Managerial Management (or managing) is the administration of an organization, whether it is a business, a nonprofit organization, or a government body. It is the art and science of managing resources of the business. Management includes the activities ...
,
Executive Executive ( exe., exec., execu.) may refer to: Role or title * Executive, a senior management role in an organization ** Chief executive officer (CEO), one of the highest-ranking corporate officers (executives) or administrators ** Executive di ...
and
Technical Technical may refer to: * Technical (vehicle), an improvised fighting vehicle * Technical analysis, a discipline for forecasting the future direction of prices through the study of past market data * Technical drawing, showing how something is co ...
' (PMET)
workforce The workforce or labour force is a concept referring to the pool of human beings either in employment or in unemployment. It is generally used to describe those working for a single company or industry, but can also apply to a geographic reg ...
composed of residents and
expatriates An expatriate (often shortened to expat) is a person who resides outside their native country. In common usage, the term often refers to educated professionals, skilled workers, or artists taking positions outside their home country, either ...
. The economy of Singapore ranked 2nd overall in the Scientific American Biotechnology ranking in 2014, with the featuring of
Biopolis Biopolis; ta, பயோபோலிஸ் is a research and development centre for biomedical sciences in Singapore. It is located at one-north in Buona Vista, and is close to the National University of Singapore, the Singapore Polytechnic, t ...
. To preserve its international standing and to further its economic
prosperity Prosperity is the flourishing, thriving, good fortune and successful social status. Prosperity often produces profuse wealth including other factors which can be profusely wealthy in all degrees, such as happiness and health. Competing notions ...
in the 21st century, Singapore has taken measures to promote
innovation Innovation is the practical implementation of ideas that result in the introduction of new goods or services or improvement in offering goods or services. ISO TC 279 in the standard ISO 56000:2020 defines innovation as "a new or changed enti ...
, to encourage
entrepreneurship Entrepreneurship is the creation or extraction of economic value. With this definition, entrepreneurship is viewed as change, generally entailing risk beyond what is normally encountered in starting a business, which may include other values t ...
and to retrain its
workforce The workforce or labour force is a concept referring to the pool of human beings either in employment or in unemployment. It is generally used to describe those working for a single company or industry, but can also apply to a geographic reg ...
. The Ministry of Manpower (MoM) has the prime responsibility for setting, adjusting, and enforcing
immigration Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not natives or where they do not possess citizenship in order to settle as permanent residents or naturalized citizens. Commuters, tourists, ...
rules for
foreign workers Foreign workers or guest workers are people who work in a country other than one of which they are a citizen. Some foreign workers use a guest worker program in a country with more preferred job prospects than in their home country. Guest worke ...
, in order to achieve the dual mandate of maximum employment of the local resident population and maximum economic growth for the nation. Approximately 29% of the total population within Singapore are non-resident foreigners, including 255,800 foreign domestic workers (FDWs) who operate in Singapore.


Economic statistics

The following table shows the main economic indicators in 1980–2021 (with IMF staff estimates in 2022–2027). Inflation below 5% is in green.


History


British colonization

In 1819,
Stamford Raffles Sir Thomas Stamford Bingley Raffles (5 July 1781 – 5 July 1826) was a British statesman who served as the Lieutenant-Governor of the Dutch East Indies between 1811 and 1816, and Lieutenant-Governor of Bencoolen between 1818 and 1824. He is ...
, at the time Lieutenant-Governor of Bencoolen, established a trading post in Singapore. Raffles had been searching for a new settlement that could be used as an outpost of the British Empire. He left Calcutta and set out to explore much of South-East Asia. At the time, the Dutch Empire and British Empire were close economic rivals. Colonization enabled both parties to gain vast control of resources from civilizations whose economic might was not as advanced. Raffles was looking for a new settlement to replace Malacca that could provide a key economic advantage over the Dutch Empire. The former was handed over to the Dutch during the Treaty of Vienna. Raffles found Singapore to be a perfect location, sitting just of the edge of the Straights of Malacca, nowadays one of the most important shipping lanes in the world. As well, the territory had key economic resources which would benefit the British. There was abundant timber and fresh water, and a natural deep water harbor which would be beneficial for the British fleet. He arrived at the mouth of the Singapore River, where there was a small Malay settlement. At the time Accompanied by William Farquhar, Raffles met with Temenggong Abdul Rahman, the leader of the settlement, to negotiate the right to establish a trading post on the island, under the British Empire. The island was ruled by the Sultan of Johor, Tengku Rahman, who was a heavily influenced by the Dutch and the Bugis. However, the Sultanate was weakened by factional division within his people and Temenggong Abdul Rahman and his officials were loyal to Rahman's elder brother Tengku Hussein (or Tengku Long) who was living in exile in Riau. With the Temenggong's help, Raffles managed to smuggle Hussein back into Singapore. He offered to recognize Hussein as the rightful Sultan of Johor and provide him with a yearly payment; in return, Hussein would grant the British the right to establish a trading post on Singapore. On 6 February 1819 Raffles successfully arranged for the territory to be incorporated into the British Empire as an aforementioned trading post. Much of the wealth accumulated early within the region was to be accredited to it hosting one of the major seaport hubs.


Trade expansion

On 17 November 1869, the
Suez Canal The Suez Canal ( arz, قَنَاةُ ٱلسُّوَيْسِ, ') is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea to the Red Sea through the Isthmus of Suez and dividing Africa and Asia. The long canal is a popula ...
opens, connecting the
Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on ...
to the
Red Sea The Red Sea ( ar, البحر الأحمر - بحر القلزم, translit=Modern: al-Baḥr al-ʾAḥmar, Medieval: Baḥr al-Qulzum; or ; Coptic: ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϩⲁϩ ''Phiom Enhah'' or ⲫⲓⲟⲙ ⲛ̀ϣⲁⲣⲓ ''Phiom ǹšari''; ...
. This allowed for an decrease in travel time, which resulted in a rise in trade volume. The nation saw a $32 million rise just a year after its opening. Trade volume reached $105 million
Straits dollar The Straits dollar was the currency of the Straits Settlements from 1898 until 1939. At the same time, it was also used in the Federated Malay States, the Unfederated Malay States, Kingdom of Sarawak, Brunei, and British North Borneo. H ...
s in 1879, during which entrepot trade was the main source of income and trade alone accounted for more than one-third of GDP.


Independence

In the 1950s, the region saw social unrest which resulted in colonial powers deciding to relinquish some decision making. With spurs of race riots the colonial powers sought to empower and establish a formidable local government. With most of the unrest resulting from high unemployment, the local government was directed to solve this issue. The
Economic Development Board The Economic Development Board (EDB) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry of the Government of Singapore that plans and executes strategies to sustain Singapore as a leading global hub for business and investment. Hi ...
was formed to empower the Singapore government in establishing, developing, and financing industrial undertakings. In 1955, a Singapore local legislative Assembly with 25 out of 35 members elected was formed. Upon independence from Malaysia in 1965, Singapore faced a small domestic market, and high levels of unemployment and poverty. 70 percent of Singapore's households lived in badly overcrowded conditions, and a third of its people squatted in slums on the city fringes. Unemployment averaged 14 percent, GDP per capita was US$516, and half of the population was illiterate.


Industrialisation boom and change

After
Lee Kuan Yew Lee Kuan Yew (16 September 1923 – 23 March 2015), born Harry Lee Kuan Yew, often referred to by his initials LKY, was a Singaporean lawyer and statesman who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1959 and 1990, and Secretary-General o ...
was elected, he oversaw significant economic reforms to the country. Structural change and machinery propelled the economy during his tenure. Singapore was a small and densely populated nation, with very few natural resources and little space to grow outwards. Recognizing this, Lee identified that the key advantage that Singapore held was its human capital, and its ability to provide highly educated citizens capable of competing in global industry and trade. On 1 August 1961, the Singapore Government established the
Economic Development Board The Economic Development Board (EDB) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Trade and Industry of the Government of Singapore that plans and executes strategies to sustain Singapore as a leading global hub for business and investment. Hi ...
to spearhead an investment drive, and make Singapore an attractive destination for foreign investment. FDI inflows increased greatly over the following decades, and by 2001 foreign companies accounted for 75% of manufactured output and 85% of manufactured exports. Meanwhile, Singapore's savings and investment rates rose among the highest levels in the world, while household consumption and wage shares of GDP fell among the lowest. The beginning of Lee's tenure was marked with success and from 1965–1973, annual growth of real GDP was 12.7%. He directed spending to repair and improve infrastructure. This effort spurred economic productivity and put in place the foundations needed to build up basic industry. As of 2019, Singapore's infrastructure is ranked the best in terms of quality, with a score of 95.4 out of 100. The period from 1973-1979 marked a struggle for Singapore as they pivoted away from basic infrastructure spending and moved towards more sustainable economic progress. The 1973 oil crisis raised government awareness of issues such as economic concentration. It forced the government to hold new forum to discuss ways of adapting the countries economy to economic change. GDP growth during this time was slightly lower than the preceding years, at 8.5% annually. However, unemployment was virtually 0%, and most of the population had experienced great strides in productivity. The government highlighted a focus in technology and education to be the new wave of economic gain. In addition, they identified financial services as a key area in which Singapore could diversify and attract new growth. During this time, the government invested heavily in its budding financial services industry. It managed to minimize inflation and provide workers with the proper equipment and machinery to sustain growth.


Recent history


Growth in the service sector

As a result of this investment drive, Singapore's capital stock increased 33 times by 1992, and achieved a tenfold increase in the capital-labour ratio. Living standards steadily rose, with more families moving from a lower-income status to middle-income security with increased household incomes. In 1987, Lee claimed that (based on the government's home ownership criterion) 80% of Singaporeans could now be considered to be members of the middle-class. Under Lee, Singapore had both low inflation and unemployment. However, much unlike the economic policies of Greece and the rest of Europe, Singapore followed a policy of individualising the social safety net. This led to a higher than average savings rate and a very sustainable economy in the long run. Without a burdensome welfare state or its likeliness, Singapore has developed a very self-reliant and skilled workforce well versed for a global economy. The 1990s posed a great question for Singapore, as to how they would reinvent their economy. The 1990s emergence of efficient manufacturing firms in southeast Asia challenge the nation with such a small labor force and land restrictions. Friedrich noted how " it would be "unlikely to expand beyond the current 25% share of the economy," when regarding manufacturing firms. Despite struggling in the manufacturing sector Singapore thrived in global finance, trading, and was an industrial hub for international trade. Singapore's economic strategy produced real growth averaging 8.0% from 1960 to 1999. Since the nations independence in 1965 Singapore GDP has amassed an average of a 9.5% increase. The economy picked up in 1999 under
Goh Chok Tong Goh Chok Tong (; born 20 May 1941) is a Singaporean former politician who served as Prime Minister of Singapore between 1990 and 2004, and Secretary-General of the People's Action Party between 1992 and 2004. He was the Member of Parliament (M ...
, the Prime Minister of Singapore, after the regional financial crisis, with a growth rate of 5.4%, followed by 9.9% for 2000. However, the economic slowdown in the United States, Japan and the
European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are located primarily in Europe, Europe. The union has a total area of ...
, as well as the worldwide electronics slump, had reduced the estimated economic growth in 2001 to a negative 2.0%. The economy expanded by 2.2% the following year, and by 1.1% in 2003 when Singapore was affected by the
SARS Severe acute respiratory syndrome (SARS) is a viral respiratory disease of zoonotic origin caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV or SARS-CoV-1), the first identified strain of the SARS coronavirus species, ''seve ...
outbreak. Subsequently, a major turnaround occurred in 2004 allowed it to make a significant recovery of 8.3% growth in Singapore, although the actual growth fell short of the target growth for the year more than half with only 2.5%. In 2005, economic growth was 6.4%; and in 2006, 7.9%. It was apparent that Singapore would also struggle as a result of the
global financial crisis Global means of or referring to a globe and may also refer to: Entertainment * ''Global'' (Paul van Dyk album), 2003 * ''Global'' (Bunji Garlin album), 2007 * ''Global'' (Humanoid album), 1989 * ''Global'' (Todd Rundgren album), 2015 * Bruno ...
given its status as a financial services hub. Some market commentators doubted the economy's ability to cope with the effects of the crisis. In the end the economy grew in 2009 by 3.1% and in 2010, the nation saw a 15.2% growth rate. As of 8 June 2013, Singapore's unemployment rate is around 1.9% and the country's economy has a lowered growth rate, with a rate of 1.8% on a quarter-by-quarter basis—compared to 14.8% in 2010. 2015 and 2016 saw a downturn for the nation as GDP growth shrunk to just 2 percent. Despite growth diminishing, the nation has yet to post negative growth rates which are a positive sign. During the same period of diminishing economic growth. Unemployment and inflation have also decreased. As of 2017 Singapore GDP sits at $323.907 billion. Singapore is expected to experience an economic slowdown in 2019, with GDP growth slowing to 1.9% from 3.1% in 2018, due to tariff hikes from the United States and China. During the initial months of the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
, on 26 March 2020, Singapore's Ministry of Trade and Industry said it believed that the economy would contract by between 1% and 4% in 2020. This was after the economy shrank 2.2% in the first quarter of 2020 from the same quarter in 2019. On 26 May, MTI said that it was revising down its expectation for the Singapore economy in 2020 to shrink by 4% to 7%. Economists had to downgrade their numbers from previously, and some suggested that the economic recovery could take some time. In response to the economic pressure, Moody's temporarily downgraded the Singapore banking sector that year from "stable" outlook to a "negative" outlook. It was estimated by the economist Chua Hak Bin, the Singapore circuit breaker measures in response to the pandemic, beginning on 7 April could impact the economy to the tune of S$10 billion. With the lockdown imposed on construction workers, there were concerns that there could be delays in construction projects of up to six months. Senior Minister of State for Trade and Industry
Chee Hong Tat Chee Hong Tat ( zh, s=徐芳达, p=Xú Fāngdá; born 1973) is a Singaporean politician who has been serving as Senior Minister of State for Finance since 2022 and Senior Minister of State for Transport since 2020. A member of the governing Pe ...
announced that some 3,800 companies had closed in April 2020, only slightly higher than the 3,700 reported on average for the same month in the past 5 years. Though he warned that this would likely rise in the coming months. Despite this only small increase in companies shutting down, the number of companies starting up had declined by about a third from the average April since 2015.


State enterprise and investment

The public sector is used both as an investor and as a catalyst for economic development and innovation. The government of Singapore has two sovereign wealth funds,
Temasek Holdings Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited, or simply Temasek, is a Singaporean state holding company owned by the Government of Singapore. Incorporated on 25 June 1974, Temasek owns and manages a total of US$496.59 billion (S$671 billion) in assets u ...
and
GIC Private Limited GIC Private Limited is a sovereign wealth fund in Singapore that manages its foreign reserves. Established by the Government of Singapore in 1981 as the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, its mission is to preserve and enhance th ...
, which are used to manage the country's reserves. Initially the state's role was oriented more toward managing industries for economic development, but in recent decades the objectives of Singapore's sovereign wealth funds have shifted to a commercial basis. Government-linked corporations play a substantial role in Singapore's domestic economy. As of November 2011, the top six Singapore-listed GLCs accounted for about 17 percent of total capitalization of the Singapore Exchange (SGX). These fully and partially state-owned enterprises operate on a commercial basis and are granted no competitive advantage over privately owned enterprises. State ownership is prominent in strategic sectors of the economy, including telecommunications, media, public transportation, defence, port, airport operations as well as banking, shipping, airline, infrastructure and real estate. As of 2014, Temasek holds S$69 billion of assets in Singapore, accounting for 7% of the total capitalization of Singapore-listed companies. In 2017, GSK shifted its Asian Headquarters to Singapore. All figures in billions of Singapore dollars.


Sectors

To maintain its competitive position despite rising wages, the government seeks to promote higher value-added activities in the manufacturing and services sectors. It also has opened, or is in the process of opening, the financial services, telecommunications, and power generation and retailing sectors up to foreign service providers and greater competition. The government has also attempted some measures including wage restraint measures and release of unused buildings in an effort to control rising commercial rents with the view to lowering the cost of doing business in Singapore when central business district office rents tripled in 2006.


Banking

Singapore is considered a global financial hub by many leading financial analysts, economists and politicians, with Singapore banks offering world-class corporate bank account facilities. In the 2020 Global Financial Centers Index, Singapore was ranked as having the sixth most competitive financial center in the world, and fourth most competitive in Asia. These include multiple currencies, internet banking, telephone banking, checking accounts, savings accounts, debit and credit cards, fixed term deposits and wealth management services. Singapore has also attracted assets formerly held in Swiss banks for several reasons, including new taxes imposed on Swiss accounts and a weakening of Swiss
bank secrecy Banking secrecy, alternately known as financial privacy, banking discretion, or bank safety,Guex (2000), p. 240 is a conditional agreement between a bank and its clients that all foregoing activities remain secure, confidential, and private. Mo ...
.
Credit Suisse Credit Suisse Group AG is a global investment bank and financial services firm founded and based in Switzerland. Headquartered in Zürich, it maintains offices in all major financial centers around the world and is one of the nine global " ...
, the second largest Swiss bank, moved its head of international
private banking Private banking is banking, investment and other financial services provided by banks and financial institutions primarily serving high-net-worth individuals (HNWIs)—defined as those with very high levels of income or sizable assets. A bank that ...
to Singapore in 2005. For this, the country has also been dubbed the "Switzerland of Asia".


Biotechnology

Singapore has been aggressively developing its
biotechnology Biotechnology is the integration of natural sciences and engineering sciences in order to achieve the application of organisms, cells, parts thereof and molecular analogues for products and services. The term ''biotechnology'' was first used ...
industry. Hundred of millions of dollars were invested into the sector to build up infrastructure, fund research and development and to recruit top international scientists to Singapore. Leading drug makers, such as
GlaxoSmithKline GSK plc, formerly GlaxoSmithKline plc, is a British multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology company with global headquarters in London, England. Established in 2000 by a merger of Glaxo Wellcome and SmithKline Beecham. GSK is the tent ...
(GSK),
Pfizer Pfizer Inc. ( ) is an American multinational pharmaceutical and biotechnology corporation headquartered on 42nd Street in Manhattan, New York City. The company was established in 1849 in New York by two German entrepreneurs, Charles Pfize ...
and Merck & Co., have set up plants in Singapore. In 2006 GSK invested another S$300 million to build another plant to produce
paediatric Pediatrics ( also spelled ''paediatrics'' or ''pædiatrics'') is the branch of medicine that involves the medical care of infants, children, adolescents, and young adults. In the United Kingdom, paediatrics covers many of their youth until the ...
vaccines A vaccine is a biological preparation that provides active acquired immunity to a particular infectious or malignant disease. The safety and effectiveness of vaccines has been widely studied and verified.
, its first such facility in Asia. Pharmaceuticals now account for more than 8% of the country's manufacturing production. In 2022, the biopharma industry of Singapore accounted for manufacturing output of USD 18 billion a year, a value that had tripled during two decades.


Energy and infrastructure

Singapore is the pricing centre and leading oil trading hub in Asia. The oil industry makes up 5% of Singapore's GDP, with Singapore being one of the top three export refining centres in the world. In 2007, it exported 68.1 million tonnes of oil. The oil industry has led to the promotion of the chemical industry as well as oil and gas equipment manufacturing. Singapore has 70 per cent of the world market for both jack-up rigs and for the conversion of Floating Production Storage Offloading units. It has 20 per cent of the world market for ship repair, and in 2008 the marine and offshore industry employed almost 70,000 workers. Singapore has limited potential for renewable energy mainly due to its small surface area; solar power holds the greatest potential.Vakulchuk, R., Chan, H.Y., Kresnawan, M.R., Merdekawati, M., Overland, I., Sagbakken, H.F., Suryadi, B., Utama, N.A. and Yurnaidi, Z. 2020. Singapore: How to Attract More Investment in Renewable Energy? ASEAN Centre for Energy (ACE) Policy Brief Series, No 11. https://www.researchgate.net/publication/341794179 The government set a target of generating solar power to cover 350,000 households in 2030 that would equal to 4% of the country's electricity demand in 2020. As a financial hub, Singapore can play an important role in attracting investment in renewable energy in the entire
ASEAN ASEAN ( , ), officially the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is a political and economic union of 10 member states in Southeast Asia, which promotes intergovernmental cooperation and facilitates economic, political, security, milita ...
region.


Real estate

The Singapore government also owns 90 percent of the country's land, as well as housing in which 80 percent of the population lives. In July 2022, a report by
Savills Savills plc is a British real estate services company based in London. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE 250 Index. History The business was established by Alfred Savill (1829–1905) in 1855 in London. B ...
revealed that Singapore tied with New York City in recording the highest rental growth rate for luxury homes globally.


Tourism

Tourism plays an important role in the economy of Singapore. Singapore ranks among the most visited cities in the world.


Trade, investment and aid

Singapore's total trade in 2014 amounted to S$982
billion Billion is a word for a large number, and it has two distinct definitions: *1,000,000,000, i.e. one thousand million, or (ten to the ninth power), as defined on the short scale. This is its only current meaning in English. * 1,000,000,000,000, i. ...
. Despite its small size, Singapore is currently the fifteenth-largest trading partner of the United States. In 2014, Singapore's imports totaled $464 billion, and exports totalled $519 billion. Malaysia was Singapore's main import source, as well as its largest export market, absorbing 18% of Singapore's exports, with the United States close behind. However, it is worth noting that there were efforts by some vegetable suppliers from Malaysia to try and smuggle food in if they do not meet food safety standards.
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...
is Singapore's biggest trading partner, with bilateral trade totalling roughly 91 billion US dollars in 2012, accounting for over a fifth of total trade within
ASEAN ASEAN ( , ), officially the Association of Southeast Asian Nations, is a political and economic union of 10 member states in Southeast Asia, which promotes intergovernmental cooperation and facilitates economic, political, security, milita ...
. Singapore's trade with major trading partners such as Malaysia, China,
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...
and
South Korea South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea (ROK), is a country in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korea, Korean Peninsula and sharing a Korean Demilitarized Zone, land border with North Korea. Its western border is formed ...
increased in 2012, while trade with EU27, United States, Hong Kong and Japan decreased in 2012. Since 2009, the value of exports exceeds imports for Singapore's trade with China. In comparison, the value of imports exceeds exports for Singapore's trade with the US since 2006. Re-exports accounted for 43% of Singapore's total sales to other countries in 2000. Singapore's principal exports are electronic components, refined petroleum, gold, computers, and packaged medications. Singapore's main imports are electronic components, refined petroleum, crude petroleum, gold, and computers. Trade in Singapore has benefited from the extensive network of trade agreements Singapore has passed. According to Healy Consultants, Singapore has free trade access to the entirety of the ASEAN network, with import duty reduced when dealing with Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand, Brunei, Burma, Cambodia, Laos and Vietnam. The Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) continues to attract investment funds on a large-scale for the country despite the city's relatively high-cost operating environment. The US leads in foreign investment, accounting for 40% of new commitments to the manufacturing sector in 2000. As of 1999, cumulative investment for manufacturing and services by American companies in Singapore reached approximately $20 billion (total assets). The bulk of US investment is in electronics manufacturing, oil refining and storage, and the chemical industry. More than 1,500 US firms operate in Singapore. Singapore's largely corruption-free government, skilled workforce, and advanced and efficient infrastructure have attracted investments from more than 3,000
multinational corporation A multinational company (MNC), also referred to as a multinational enterprise (MNE), a transnational enterprise (TNE), a transnational corporation (TNC), an international corporation or a stateless corporation with subtle but contrasting senses, i ...
s (MNCs) from the United States, Japan, and Europe. Foreign firms are found in almost all sectors of the economy. MNCs account for more than two-thirds of manufacturing output and direct export sales, although certain services sectors remain dominated by government-linked corporations. The government also has encouraged firms to invest outside Singapore, with the country's total direct investments abroad reaching $39 billion by the end of 1998. The People's Republic of China was the top destination, accounting for 14% of total overseas investments, followed by
Malaysia Malaysia ( ; ) is a country in Southeast Asia. The federal constitutional monarchy consists of thirteen states and three federal territories, separated by the South China Sea into two regions: Peninsular Malaysia and Borneo's East Mal ...
(10%), Hong Kong (9%),
Indonesia Indonesia, officially the Republic of Indonesia, is a country in Southeast Asia and Oceania between the Indian and Pacific oceans. It consists of over 17,000 islands, including Sumatra, Java, Sulawesi, and parts of Borneo and New Gui ...
(8%) and US (4%). The rapidly growing economy of India, especially the high technology sector, is becoming an expanding source of foreign investment for Singapore. The United States provides no bilateral aid to Singapore, but the US appears keen to improve bilateral trade and signed the US-Singapore Free Trade Agreement. Singapore corporate tax is 17 per cent.


International trade agreements


Singapore workforce

In 2000, Singapore had a workforce of about 2.2 million. With limited access to natural resources, Singapore had been forced to invest in its people. The country has the largest proficiency of English language speakers in Asia, making it an attractive place for multinational corporations. Singapore has come a long way from where it once stood. In the 1970s according to Tilak Abeysinghe "2.4 percent of the labor force were degree holders" By 1990 the number rose to just 6.3%. In 2013 the number of labor force who hold degrees has amassed to 31%. The nations directive toward high skilled labor jobs, has promoted both growth and education to the region. The
National Trades Union Congress The National Trades Union Congress (NTUC), also known as the Singapore National Trades Union Congress (SNTUC) internationally, is the sole national trade union centre in Singapore. NTUC is at the heart of the Labour Movement which comprises 5 ...
(NTUC), the sole trade union federation, which has a symbiotic relationship with the ruling party, accounts for almost 99% of total organised labour. Government policy and pro-activity rather than labour legislation controls general labour and trade union matters. The Employment Act offers little protection to white-collar workers due to an income threshold. The Industrial Arbitration Court handles labour-management disputes that cannot be resolved informally through the Ministry of Manpower. The
Singapore Government The Government of Singapore is defined by the Constitution of Singapore to mean the executive branch of the state, which is made up of the president and the Cabinet. Although the president acts in their personal discretion in the exercise ...
has stressed the importance of co-operation between unions, management and government (
tripartism Tripartism is an economic system of neo-corporatism based on a mixed economy and tripartite contracts between employers' organizations, trade unions, and the government of a country. Each is to act as a social partner to create economic polic ...
), as well as the early resolution of disputes. There has been only one strike in the past 15 years. Singapore has enjoyed virtually full employment for long periods of time. Amid an economic slump, the unemployment rate rose to 4.0% by the end of 2001, from 2.4% early in the year. Unemployment has since declined and as of 2012 the unemployment rate stands at 1.9%. While the Singapore government has taken a stance against
minimum wage A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay their employees—the price floor below which employees may not sell their labor. Most countries had introduced minimum wage legislation by the end of the 20th century. B ...
and
unemployment benefit Unemployment benefits, also called unemployment insurance, unemployment payment, unemployment compensation, or simply unemployment, are payments made by authorized bodies to unemployed people. In the United States, benefits are funded by a comp ...
schemes, in 2007 the government introduced a Workfare Income Supplement (WIS) scheme to supplement wages of low-skilled workers. To support employers in hiring older Singaporean workers, Special Employment Credit (SEC) was introduced in 2011. It was first enhanced in 2012 to provide employers with support in hiring older Singaporean workers and Persons with Disabilities (PWDs). It helped the employers to cope with costs associated with the increase in Central Provident Fund (CPF) contribution rates for older workers. The 5-year SEC scheme was further extended to additional 3 years, up to 2019 to encourage employers to voluntarily re-employ older workers aged 65 and above. The Singapore Government and the NTUC have tried a range of programs to increase lagging productivity and boost the labour force participation rates of women and older workers. However, labour shortages persist in the service sector and in many low-skilled positions in the construction and electronics industries. Foreign workers help make up this shortfall. In 2000, there were about 600,000 foreign workers in Singapore, constituting 27% of the total work force. As a result, wages are relatively suppressed or do not rise for all workers. To have some controls, the government imposes a foreign worker levy payable by employers for low end workers like domestic help and construction workers. In 2012, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) reported that Singapore should continue to fine-tune the calibration of its inflow of foreigners as the country continues to face an ageing population and a shrinking workforce. Singapore Parliament accepted the recommendations by its Economic Strategies Committee (ESC) for the optimal ratio of the level of immigration and foreign manpower for both high and low skilled workers. The Government recognises that the current overall foreign workforce should complement the local resident workforce and not replace the Singaporean Core concept, and helps companies greatly as they raise productivity through business restructuring and workforce retraining; raise resident labour force participation rate.


Poverty and economic inequality

Singapore is one of the world's wealthiest countries ''per capita'', but its Gini coefficient is high in comparison to developed countries. Statistics on income inequality are published by the Singapore Department of Statistics. Without taking taxes and social transfers into account, Singapore's gini coefficient puts the country in the medium range. Nevertherless, the country remains on the "very high" category on the inequality-adjusted human development index (IHDI), a ranking similar to the
Human Development Index The Human Development Index (HDI) is a statistic composite index of life expectancy, education (mean years of schooling completed and expected years of schooling upon entering the education system), and per capita income indicators, w ...
(HDI), but with
inequality Inequality may refer to: Economics * Attention inequality, unequal distribution of attention across users, groups of people, issues in etc. in attention economy * Economic inequality, difference in economic well-being between population groups * ...
also accounted for. In October 2018,
Oxfam Oxfam is a British-founded confederation of 21 independent charitable organizations focusing on the alleviation of global poverty, founded in 1942 and led by Oxfam International. History Founded at 17 Broad Street, Oxford, as the Oxford Co ...
ranked Singapore 149 out of 157 in its Commitment to Reducing Inequality Index 2018, placing it among the bottom ten of the countries in the index, which ranks countries based on efforts to reduce
economic inequality There are wide varieties of economic inequality, most notably income inequality measured using the distribution of income (the amount of money people are paid) and wealth inequality measured using the distribution of wealth (the amount of ...
. In its report, Oxfam accused Singapore of practices which encouraged "harmful tax practices", not having a universal
minimum wage A minimum wage is the lowest remuneration that employers can legally pay their employees—the price floor below which employees may not sell their labor. Most countries had introduced minimum wage legislation by the end of the 20th century. B ...
(apart from
janitor A janitor (American English, Scottish English), also known as a custodian, porter, cleanser, cleaner or caretaker, is a person who cleans and maintains buildings. In some cases, they will also carry out maintenance and security duties. A simil ...
s and security guards), and poor performance on
labour rights Labor rights or workers' rights are both legal rights and human rights relating to labor relations between workers and employers. These rights are codified in national and international labor and employment law. In general, these rights influe ...
. The government responded to the report by claiming that it was more important to look at "real outcomes" such as Singapore's high home ownership, health, education, and employment, rather than public spending or tax rates, also saying that the report "assumes that high taxation and high public expenditure reflects commitment to combating inequality". The government provides social support through a variety of social assistance schemes. The Ministry of Social and Family Development runs ComCare, a program which provides income support for low-income citizen households through various schemes for short-to-medium term assistance, long-term assistance, child support, and urgent financial needs. The
Community Development Council The Community Development Council (CDC; ms, Majlis Pembangunan Masyarakat; zh, 社区发展理事会; ta, சமூக மேம்பாட்டு மன்றம்) is a government-led programme to organise grassroot organisations and comm ...
s also run various local assistance schemes within their districts. The Ministry of Manpower runs a Silver Support Scheme which provides additional financial support for low-income elderly with no family support. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Health also runs MediFund to assist families that have difficulty paying for medical bills despite government subsidies and other health financing schemes. In addition, the
National Council of Social Service The National Council of Social Service (NCSS) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Social and Family Development of the Government of Singapore The Government of Singapore is defined by the Constitution of Singapore to mean the ...
coordinates a range of 450 non-government voluntary welfare organisations to provide social services, while raising funds through
The Community Chest of Singapore The National Council of Social Service (NCSS) is a statutory board under the Ministry of Social and Family Development of the Government of Singapore The Government of Singapore is defined by the Constitution of Singapore to mean th ...
. Today, low and middle-income groups now receive 2.5 times the public subsidies they did ten years ago.


Public finance

Government spending in Singapore has risen since the start of the global financial crisis, from around 15% of GDP in 2008 to 17% in 2012. The government's total expenditure as a percentage of GDP ranks among the lowest internationally and allows for a competitive tax regime. Singapore is required under its constitution to keep a balanced budget over each term of government. Singapore government debt is issued for investment purposes, not to fund expenditure. Personal income taxes in Singapore range from 0% to 22% for incomes above S$320,000. There are no capital gains or inheritance taxes in Singapore. Singapore's corporate tax rate is 17% with exemptions and incentives for smaller businesses. Singapore has a single-tier corporate income tax system, which means there is no double-taxation for shareholders. Singapore introduced Goods and Services Tax (GST) with an initial rate of 3% on 1 April 1994, increasing government's revenue by S$1.6 billion (US$1b, €800m) and establishing government finances. The taxable GST was increased to 4% in 2003, to 5% in 2004, and to 7% in 2007. The Singapore government owns two investment companies,
GIC Private Limited GIC Private Limited is a sovereign wealth fund in Singapore that manages its foreign reserves. Established by the Government of Singapore in 1981 as the Government of Singapore Investment Corporation, its mission is to preserve and enhance th ...
and
Temasek Holdings Temasek Holdings (Private) Limited, or simply Temasek, is a Singaporean state holding company owned by the Government of Singapore. Incorporated on 25 June 1974, Temasek owns and manages a total of US$496.59 billion (S$671 billion) in assets u ...
, which manage Singapore's reserves. Both operate as commercial investment holding companies independently of the Singapore government, but Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and his wife Ho Ching serve as chairman and CEO of these corporations respectively. While GIC invests abroad, Temasek holds 31% of its portfolio in Singapore, holding majority stakes in several of the nation's largest companies, such as
Singapore Airlines Singapore Airlines ( abbreviation: SIA) is the flag carrier airline of the Republic of Singapore with its hub located at Singapore Changi Airport. The airline is notable for highlighting the Singapore Girl as its central figure in corporat ...
,
SingTel Singapore Telecommunications Limited, commonly known as Singtel, is a Singaporean telecommunications conglomerate and one of the four major telcos operating in the country. The company is the largest mobile network operator in Singapore with ...
,
ST Engineering Singapore Technologies Engineering Ltd, doing business as ST Engineering, is a Singaporean multinational technology and engineering group in the aerospace, smart city as well as defence and public security sectors. Headquartered in Singapore, ...
and
MediaCorp Mediacorp Pte. Ltd., doing business as Mediacorp and stylised as mediacorp, is a media conglomerate in Singapore. Owned by Temasek Holdings—the holding company of the Government of Singapore—it owns television, radio, and digital media prope ...
. As of 2014, Temasek holds S$69 billion of assets in Singapore, accounting for 7% of the total capitalisation of Singapore-listed companies. In April 2013, the country was recognised as an increasingly popular tax haven for the wealthy due to the low tax rate on personal income, a full tax exemption on income that is generated outside of Singapore and 69 double taxation treaties that can minimise both withholding tax and capital gains tax. Australian millionaire retailer
Brett Blundy Brett Blundy (born 1959/1960) is an Australian billionaire businessman. He is the founder and former chairman of BB Retail Capital, which owns companies such as Sanity Entertainment, Bras N Things, and Aventus Property Group. He is part-owner ...
, with an estimated personal wealth worth AU$835 million, and multi-billionaire Facebook co-founder
Eduardo Saverin Eduardo Luiz Saverin (; ; born March 19, 1982) is a Brazilian billionaire entrepreneur and angel investor based in Singapore. Saverin is one of the co-founders of Facebook. In 2012, he owned 53 million Facebook shares (approximately 2% of all ou ...
are two examples of wealthy individuals who have settled in Singapore (Blundy in 2013 and Saverin in 2012). Additionally, Australian mining magnate
Gina Rinehart Georgina Hope Rinehart (née Hancock, born 9 February 1954) is an Australian mining magnate and businesswoman. Rinehart is the Executive Chairman of Hancock Prospecting, a privately owned mineral exploration and extraction company founded by ...
owns property in Singapore and American investor
Jim Rogers James Beeland Rogers Jr. (born October 19, 1942) is an American investor and financial commentator based in Singapore. Rogers is the chairman of Beeland Interests, Inc. He was the co-founder of the Quantum Fund and Soros Fund Management. He wa ...
moved to Singapore in 2007—Rogers has identified the 21st century as an era in which Asia will dominate and wishes for his two daughters to learn Mandarin as a key outcome of the relocation. Chinese Media TV celebrities Jet Li and Gong Li have also taken up naturalised Singapore citizenship.


Monetary policy

The
Monetary Authority of Singapore The Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is the central bank and financial regulatory authority of Singapore. It administers the various statutes pertaining to money, banking, insurance, securities and the financial sector in general, as well ...
(MAS) is Singapore's
central bank A central bank, reserve bank, or monetary authority is an institution that manages the currency and monetary policy of a country or monetary union, and oversees their commercial banking system. In contrast to a commercial bank, a centra ...
and financial regulatory authority. Its current chairman is
Tharman Shanmugaratnam Tharman Shanmugaratnam (Tamil: தர்மன் சண்முகரத்தினம்; born 25 February 1957) is a Singaporean politician and economist who has been serving as Senior Minister of Singapore since 2019 and has also been C ...
(May 2011–present). It administers the various statutes pertaining to money, banking, insurance, securities and the financial sector in general, as well as currency issuance. The MAS has been given powers to act as a banker to and financial agent of the Government. It has also been entrusted to promote monetary stability, and credit and exchange policies conducive to the growth of the economy. Unlike many other central banks such as
Federal Reserve System The Federal Reserve System (often shortened to the Federal Reserve, or simply the Fed) is the central banking system of the United States of America. It was created on December 23, 1913, with the enactment of the Federal Reserve Act, after ...
,
European Central Bank The European Central Bank (ECB) is the prime component of the monetary Eurosystem and the European System of Central Banks (ESCB) as well as one of seven institutions of the European Union. It is one of the world's most important centra ...
or
Bank of England The Bank of England is the central bank of the United Kingdom and the model on which most modern central banks have been based. Established in 1694 to act as the English Government's banker, and still one of the bankers for the Government o ...
, MAS does not regulate the monetary system via interest rates to influence the liquidity in the system. Instead, it chooses to do it via the foreign exchange mechanism, which it has been doing since 1981. In doing so it manages the Singapore dollar versus a number of currencies that they do not reveal publicly – a Singapore dollar nominal effective exchange rate (S$ NEER). It carries this out by intervening in the SGD market as well as other operations in the money market. The MAS reviews its policy stance less frequently than most central banks, in a cycle that is around every 6 months. In some circumstances, such as during the
COVID-19 pandemic The COVID-19 pandemic, also known as the coronavirus pandemic, is an ongoing global pandemic of coronavirus disease 2019 (COVID-19) caused by severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 (SARS-CoV-2). The novel virus was first identi ...
MAS can change the date of its twice yearly meeting. In May 2022, six major banks agreed to pay $64.5 million to resolve antitrust allegations that they worked together to rig benchmark Singapore interest rates. The banks involved included Credit Suisse AG, Deutsche Bank AG, The Hongkong and Shanghai Banking Corporation Limited, ING Bank N.V., Citibank N.A. and JPMorgan Chase & Co.


Property policy

To dampen property speculation, the government imposed Additional Buyer Stamp Duty (ABSD) starting in December 2011. It was subsequently raised in January 2013 and then again in July 2018. Currently for Singapore citizens buying their first property, there is no ABSD. For their second property onwards, they pay up to 15% ABSD. For foreigners the ABSD rate is 20% no matter if it is the first property. And for entities it is 25%. At the same time they raised the ABSD in 2018, the MAS tightened rules on housing loans, by limiting the loan tenure and reducing the Loan-to-Value ratio.


Mergers and acquisitions

16,156 mergers and acquisitions deals have been conducted in Singapore so far, which accumulated to a total value of 850. bil. USD. Since 1985 there has been a constant upward trend, disrupted only in 2002 and 2009. The most active year in terms of numbers (926) and value (78. bil. USD) has been 2017, so there is currently an all-time high. In general inbound and outbound deals in Singapore are nearly equally distributed. Here is a list of the top 10 deals with Singaporean participation inbound or outbound:


Facts and figures

Percentage of economic growth: 1.7% (2016) Industrial production growth rate: 1% (2016 est.) Electricity – production by source:
''fossil fuel:'' 95.3%
''hydro:'' 0%
''nuclear:'' 0%
''other:'' 3.9% (2014 est.) Electricity – consumption: 47.5 TWh (2016) Electricity – exports: 0 kWh (2007) Electricity – imports: 0 kWh (2007) Agriculture – products: rubber,
copra Copra (from ) is the dried, white flesh of the coconut from which coconut oil is extracted. Traditionally, the coconuts are sun-dried, especially for export, before the oil, also known as copra oil, is pressed out. The oil extracted from co ...
, fruit, vegetables; poultry, eggs, fish,
orchid Orchids are plants that belong to the family Orchidaceae (), a diverse and widespread group of flowering plants with blooms that are often colourful and fragrant. Along with the Asteraceae, they are one of the two largest families of floweri ...
s, ornamental fish Currency: 1 Singapore dollar (S$ or SGD) = 100 cents Exchange rates:


International rankings


See also

*
Four Asian Tigers The Four Asian Tigers (also known as the Four Asian Dragons or Four Little Dragons in Chinese and Korean) are the developed East Asian economies of Hong Kong, Singapore, South Korea, and Taiwan. Between the early 1960s and 1990s, they underwent ...
*
5 C's of Singapore "Five Cs of Singapore" — namely, cash, car, credit card, condominium and country club membership — is a phrase used in Singapore to refer to materialism. It was coined as a popular observational joke during the 1990s about the aspirations of ...
*
Biopolis Biopolis; ta, பயோபோலிஸ் is a research and development centre for biomedical sciences in Singapore. It is located at one-north in Buona Vista, and is close to the National University of Singapore, the Singapore Polytechnic, t ...
*
Dual economy A dual economy is the existence of two separate economic sectors within one country, divided by different levels of development, technology, and different patterns of demand. The concept was originally created by Julius Herman Boeke to describe th ...
*
Bamboo network The Bamboo network () or the Chinese Commonwealth () is a term used to conceptualize connections between businesses operated by the Overseas Chinese community in Southeast Asia. The Overseas Chinese business networks constitute the single most ...
*
Immigrant workers in Singapore Immigration to Singapore is the process by which people migrate to Singapore for the purpose of residing there—and where a majority go on to become permanent residents and Singaporean citizens. Singapore is an attractive destination especial ...
*
Singapore Workplace Safety and Health Conference The Singapore Workplace Safety and Health Conference (SWSHC) is a biennial conference for the promotion of workplace safety and health (WSH, OH&S) thought and practice in Singapore and the region. Organised by the Workplace Safety & Health Counc ...
*
Singapore and the World Bank Singapore officially joined the International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (IBRD) on August 3, 1966 after Singapore's independence from Malaysia. By 1975, Singapore received 14 total loans from the World Bank, 10 of these loans were use ...


Notes


References


External links


Statistics Singapore

Singapore Department of Statistics

Monetary Authority of Singapore
{{DEFAULTSORT:Economy Of Singapore
Singapore Singapore (), officially the Republic of Singapore, is a sovereign island country and city-state in maritime Southeast Asia. It lies about one degree of latitude () north of the equator, off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, bor ...