US-China relations: consequences from misses and accidents can happen and will be difficult to manage, says Lawrence Wong
The trajectory of the US-China relationship is very worrying, says DPM Lawrence Wong. Clearly, the relationship is entering more dangerous terriroty. The relationship was already strained before the Russia-Ukraine war. With the recent visit by Nancy Pelosi to Taiwan, tensions have gone up by one notch, Mr Wong said in an interview with Bloomberg News […]
Why we can’t try to fully offset the impact of global rise in prices with a strong Singapore dollar
Let’s understand why we cannot try to fully offset inflation with a strong Singapore dollar. The rise in prices that the world and Singapore is facing is the result of demand and supply factors and a tight labour market. 1. Demand factor The ease of pandemic curbs has released pent-up demand due to the curbs. […]
Wealth tax? The question has never been one of whether to tax wealth but how to do it effectively: Indranee
We have heard many stories of the asset-rich but cash-poor retiree who lives in a private property bought years ago when he was young. Now he is old and struggles to get by while living in a private property because he has little cash. Familiar story? Along comes the wealth tax. Well, good luck to this […]
Singapore’s gross national debt is 6th highest in the world but no one is batting an eyelid.
As a percentage of GDP, Singapore’s gross national debt-to-GDP ratio is 131.19%. It is the 6th highest in the world (as of 2020) (source: IMF). However, no one is batting an eyelid or losing sleep over it. This is because Singapore actually owes nothing at all. The country does not borrow to spend. It borrows […]
GST from tourists. Why not? In 2019, tourism receipts was $27.7 billion
Now that our borders are open, tourists will start to come back and we will be able to collect revenue from tourists’ spending through the GST. In pre-COVID time, the bulk of net GST collected came from tourists and foreigners residing here, in addition to high income earners. At least 60% in fact. 19 million […]
Lessons from Sri Lanka on bad politics, mismanagement and populism
Good politics, honesty and integrity, and good governance are topics the PAP Government repeatedly remind Singaporeans of, sometimes like a broken record. But the experience of Sir Lanks tells us just how important these are. Sri Lanka is in its worst crisis since its independence in 1948. A severe shortage of foreign currency has left […]
Lawrence Wong: political leadership is about an entire team, not one person. Even a giant like Mr Lee Kuan Yew had a team.
“Throughout my life, I have never hankered for post, position or power… So I have never gone out looking for additional work, but somehow the work finds me,” Finance Minister Lawrence Wong said. He gave the example of the pandemic which started 2 years ago when he was Minister for National Development. “DPM called me […]
Did Workers’ Party propose more than one way to dip into strategic reserves?
Did Workers’ Party (WP) propose more than one way to dip into Singapore’s strategic reserves? Yes they did. WP in fact, proposed 2 ways to dip into our strategic reserves for recurrent spending: direct use of land sale proceeds and increased use of NIRC. Land sale proceeds Singapore’s reserves include physical assets like land. Currently, […]
Iswaran to Jamus Lim: there’s a need to square the circle, to explain where the money is coming from
“Fundamentally, there is a need to explain where the money is going to come from,” Transport Minister Iswaran tells WP MP Jamus Lim. The WP MP had called for free transport for seniors and persons with disabilities. He also described Minister Iswaran’s remarks on how free transport would impact fare increase on other commuters as […]
On Pritam Singh, playing victim and absence of shame in the Raeesah saga
You know what’s the saddest thing about this whole saga of ‘lies upon lies’? It is the total absence of shame. Up till now, there is a complete lack of admission of wrongdoing by the three WP MPs and leaders, Mr Pritam Singh, Ms Sylvia Lim and Mr Faisal Manap. There is absolutely no contrition. […]