“The Singapore economy is expected to continue on its modest pace of expansion this year. Economic restructuring remains work-in- progress in Singapore and more must be done to raise productivity growth,” said Ravi Menon, Managing Director of Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) while speaking at UBS Wealth Insights Conference.
Global tightening
He cautioned, “Singapore will not be immune to the global tightening of financial conditions, volatility in capital flows, and potential stresses in the regional corporate sector.”
“But our macro fundamentals are sound and we will weather these storms. And as we continue to invest in the future – in skills, in technology and in infrastructure, we will emerge a stronger and more dynamic economy,” he said.
Menon also said GDP growth is likely to come in the 1 to 3 per cent range.
"Our trade-oriented industries groups benefit from the mild upturn in global and regional electronics. In fact, the strong showing in the last quarter of 2016 indicates that the Singapore economy retains the capacity to ride on a cyclical upswing in demand for our exports", he said.
Global economy
Menon added that he expects the rise of fiscal policy in the United States and other major advanced economies to be the the key driving force of the global economy, along with monetary divergence and tightening financial conditions.
Other challenges he listed include balancing growth and stability in China and in Asia’s emerging markets, as well as a pushback against globalisation that can undermine growth prospects.
