(Bloomberg) – Singapore’s economy ended last year with a stronger memo than initially expected, with the government navigating global uncertainty over US tariffs and uncertainty over voter living costs in election year I was put in a good position.
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The Ministry of General Trade and Industry said in its final estimate on Friday that GDP had grown by 5% in three months from the previous year. This is better than the government has read a 4.3% increase preliminarily, consistent with the median forecast of economists.
The latest data could boost the city-state’s position as it withstands the challenges from China’s slowdown driven by President Donald Trump’s tariffs. However, according to Yong Ik Wei, chief economist at the Ministry of Trade and Industry, these taxes could affect Singapore, where trade is three times more than GDP.
“On the current assessment, the net, could have a slight negative impact on Singapore’s economy resulting from current tariff measures,” Yong told reporters after the data was released.
For the full year, GDP rose 4.4%, the fastest pace since 2021, surpassing both the government’s 4% advance and economists’ forecasts. In the quarter, the economy rose 0.5% against its median forecast for a 0.8% increase.
The government has reiterated that it expects growth in 2025 to be in the 1%-3% range. New tariff measures from the US could take time as the Department of Trade monitors the impact of its 2026 forecast.
“Singapore’s manufacturing and trade-related services sector is expected to continue expanding in 2025, but the pace of growth is likely to ease from the 2024 level,” the ministry said in a statement Friday. Ta.
The rising costs from housing to food continue to be a source of uncertainty among Singaporeans looking to settle ahead of the election, which must be held by November. Prime Minister Lawrence Wong will use his budget speech on February 18 to announce new measures to support vulnerable Singaporeans and increase their competitiveness.
Bloomberg Economics has declined this year given Singapore’s rapid rebound in 2024, one of the region’s most traded economies this year and being vulnerable to increased protectionism. I expect that. According to Tamara Henderson, Singapore’s financial authorities are likely to ease their policies further this year to ease last month.
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