Economist, Centennial Asia Advisors

Jason Tan

Economist

Centennial Asia Advisors

At Centennial Asia Advisors, we tell it like it is. We have no vested interests, no need for a China wall, and no reason to skew our outlook any other way. With over 30 years experience covering Asia’s political economy, you can be sure our conclusions and analyses are based on the unadulterated facts. Through years of fine-tuning our research methodologies, we deliver a quality of macroeconomic analysis few other houses can match.

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Economic Policy and Strategic Advisors

Macroeconomics

<ul><li>Advance GDP estimates for 2Q16 showed the Singapore economy remaining moribund, growing by 2.2% y/y in 2Q16, up marginally from 2.1% in 1Q16. Manufacturing reversed a six-month decline while services slowed markedly – a worrying sign.</li><li>Two important segments of the services sector, namely, wholesale &amp; retail trade and financial services, constituting about 28% of the economy in 2015, are manifestly weaker. Particularly, wholesale trade has been dented by the decline seen in NORX; this could threaten Singapore raison d’etre as an entrepot hub.</li><li>Policy support is imperative going forward. Fiscal policy will likely be intensified to prop up cyclical growth given that monetary policy looks to be at its limits. Finally, structural efforts by the CFE to nurture new growth drivers to power the next phase of economic development for Singapore remain critical to the country’s long-term success.</li></ul>

Advance GDP estimates for 2Q16 showed the Singapore economy remaining moribund, growing by 2.2% y/y in 2Q16, up marginally from 2.1% in 1Q16. Manufacturing reversed a six-month decline while services slowed markedly – a worrying sign.Two important segments of the services sector, namely, wholesale &amp; retail trade and financial services, constituting about 28% of the economy in 2015, are manifestly weaker. Particularly, wholesale trade has been dented by the decline seen in NORX; this could threaten Singapore raison d’etre as an entrepot hub.Policy support is imperative going forward. Fiscal policy will likely be intensified to prop up cyclical growth given that monetary policy looks to be at its limits. Finally, structural efforts by the CFE to nurture new growth drivers to power the next phase of economic development for Singapore remain critical to the country’s long-term success.

Singapore: Economy Is Moribund as Services Also Stall