Singapore retains its title as the most costly metropolis for high-net-worth-individuals, in line with Julius Baer’s 2025 World Wealth and Way of life report.
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Singapore’s central financial institution warned on Wednesday that the city-state’s economic system is “projected to average within the second half of 2025 from its sturdy tempo in [the first half],” because it stored its financial coverage unchanged.
The Financial Authority of Singapore stated it could maintain the width and degree at which its coverage band is centered amid commerce issues from the Trump administration.
“Specifically, the trade-related sectors ought to see some pullback,” the central financial institution stated in its financial coverage assertion.
“Prospects for the Singapore economic system stay topic to important uncertainty, particularly in 2026. Adjustments in efficient tariff charges worldwide might impression the efficiency of Singapore’s externally-oriented sectors.”
Monetary volatility and geopolitical shocks might deepen the impression of the worldwide slowdown and add stress on Singapore’s development outlook, MAS stated.
Singapore’s export-dependent economic system dodged a technical recession within the second quarter, with development increasing at 1.4% quarter over quarter and defying expectations of a 0.5% contraction.
On a year-over-year foundation, Singapore’s GDP grew 4.3% within the second quarter, accelerating from 4.1% within the first three months and beating expectations.
In contrast to most nations, Singapore doesn’t use rates of interest to handle its financial coverage, however as an alternative strengthens or weakens the Singapore greenback in opposition to a basket of its principal buying and selling companions in a coverage band.
The precise alternate charge just isn’t set; as an alternative, the SGD can transfer inside the set coverage band, whose exact ranges should not disclosed.
The transfer comes after the central financial institution had eased financial coverage twice earlier in 2025, and stated that it’s now “in an acceptable place to reply to dangers to medium-term worth stability.”‘
Oxford Economics economist Sheana Yue stated the choice by MAS was more than likely on account of Singapore’s sturdy GDP efficiency within the first half of the yr.
Nonetheless, Yue additionally pointed to the MAS’ language of an “acceptable place”, which steered that the central financial institution is open to adjusting its coverage sooner or later as U.S. tariffs chunk.
Singapore’s open and trade-reliant economic system makes it susceptible to increased world commerce boundaries, Yue added, including that development momentum might soften over the remainder of the yr.
Singapore’s economic system is closely depending on exports, with exports making up 178.8% of the city-state’s GDP in 2024, in line with the World Financial institution.
“It is unclear if Singapore will dealer a deal, though it might as an alternative fall inside the 10%-15% bracket for smaller economies,” Oxford Economics’ Sheana Yue stated.
On Tuesday, Singapore Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong reportedly said the U.S. was “non-committal” on whether or not the extent of tariffs will stay at 10% for Singapore imports into the U.S.
Gan was within the U.S. from July 20 to 26, and he stated that “the U.S. was not within the temper to debate any low cost to the baseline tariff.”
Singapore had been hit with the ten% levy regardless of working a commerce deficit with the U.S. and having a free commerce settlement since 2004.
Town-state has neither acquired a “tariff letter” nor come to a commerce take care of the U.S. since U.S. President Donald Trump’s so-called “liberation day” tariffs announcement on April 2.
