SINGAPORE – No matter how formidable the challenges are, Singapore should focus on the opportunities and try to grow its economy at a faster-than-expected clip, said Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong.<\/p>\n
He said Singapore\u2019s economy over the decade is expected to grow at an annual rate of 2 per cent to 3 per cent \u2013 a pace comparable with many other small, advanced economies such as New Zealand, Sweden and Switzerland.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut we should not take that as a given. Instead, we should aim higher,\u201d he said in Parliament on Sept 22.<\/p>\n
DPM Gan, who is also Minister for Trade and Industry, said Singapore should take advantage of the window of opportunities over the next few years to achieve a faster rate of growth to make the economy stronger, before it settles down to the 2 per cent to 3 per cent long-term-trend rate.<\/p>\n
However, he warned that boosting growth will not come easily, given the deteriorating global trade and economic environment and challenging domestic trends.<\/p>\n
He said: \u201cThe global developments we have seen over the past few months are not a passing storm; instead, they point towards a changed world \u2013 a new norm that is more fragmented, with sharper competition for investments, and a shift towards economic security and national interest.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese call for a new economic blueprint to steer Singapore forward in this changed world.\u201d<\/p>\n
Domestically, Singapore\u2019s workforce will grow as slowly as 1 per cent a year over the next decade, owing to an ageing workforce and falling birth rates. Productivity growth will be around 1 per cent to 2 per cent in the same period. <\/p>\n
Also, there will be times when a slowdown in the global economy will put a drag on domestic growth.<\/p>\n
Still, artificial intelligence (AI), robotics and automation present opportunities to boost productivity, while efforts should be made to grow higher-value-added industries.<\/p>\n
\u201cIf we do it right, we may be able to add 1 per cent and achieve 3 per cent to 4 per cent growth instead of 2 to 3 per cent, and, in very good years, maybe more,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
DPM Gan said Singapore today is facing three critical challenges \u2013 barriers to trade and investment; rapid acceleration of technological advancements that could disrupt industries and jobs; and limited resources such as land, carbon and manpower.<\/p>\n
\u201cHowever, amidst these challenges and difficulties, there are opportunities and new possibilities.\u201d<\/p>\n
As companies worldwide diversify their production bases and supply chains in response to the global economic landscape, there will be opportunities for capturing new investments and new markets.<\/p>\n
Technology can also open up new frontiers for research and innovation, and drive the creation of new products and services, and even new industries. <\/p>\n
Similarly, the low-carbon transition will catalyse the growth of the green economy, such as green manufacturing, clean energy, carbon services and trading, and sustainable finance.<\/p>\n
Touching on South-east Asia, DPM Gan said the region could offer strong growth potential with its young population, rising middle class, and good physical and digital connectivity.<\/p>\n
DPM Gan said efforts to define a new economic blueprint for a changed world are already under way under the Economic Strategy Review.<\/p>\n
The basic idea is to strengthen Singapore\u2019s position in existing growth sectors, such as advanced manufacturing and financial services, and at the same time establish a strong foothold in new areas of growth, he said.<\/p>\n
New growth areas where Singapore can establish a foothold include the precision medicine industry, which is projected to grow at an average of 11 per cent annually to reach a size of US$300 billion (S$385 billion) globally by 2035.<\/p>\n
Other new potential growth areas could include AI and deep tech, the green economy, autonomous vehicles and space.<\/p>\n
Singapore should also strengthen its economic fundamentals to stay competitive by deploying and adopting new technologies and upskilling its workforce.<\/p>\n
DPM Gan said: \u201cAs we transform our economy towards higher-value-added activities, we must also ensure that our upskilling and reskilling efforts keep pace. We must empower workers with new skills for the future, including being AI-fluent.\u201d<\/p>\n
He said that while local workers should gain overseas work exposure and experience, Singapore must also stay open to global talent.<\/p>\n
Singapore should also not lose sight of the immediate challenges that some of its small and medium-sized enterprises are facing, including those in the retail sector, as well as heartland enterprises.<\/p>\n
He said strengthening regional and global trade connectivity will be key, given that Singapore\u2019s trade is three times the size of its gross domestic product. <\/p>\n
\u201cOur circumstances may be challenging, but our foundations are strong,\u201d said DPM Gan.<\/p>\n
He added: \u201cTogether with determination and imagination, we can continue to grow our economy, create good opportunities for our people, and build a better and brighter future for Singapore and Singaporeans.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"SINGAPORE – No matter how formidable the challenges are, Singapore should focus on the opportunities and try to…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":32639,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[11],"tags":[114,184,85,46],"class_list":["post-32638","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-economy","tag-business","tag-economy","tag-il","tag-israel"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32638","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=32638"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/32638\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32639"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=32638"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=32638"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/il\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=32638"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}