AMRO’s Lead Economist Chaipat Poonpatpibul told the media, “The swift, sizeable, and more targeted policy measures have effectively cushioned the impact of the pandemic and supported the recovery. “Further support would be needed if the recovery falters due to a resurgence in local and overseas infections.”

In another survey conducted by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), it was predicted that Singapore’s economy is expected to grow by 15 percent in Q2 and by four percent in 2022. The 24 economists who responded to the survey by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said that Singapore could perform beyond expectations if the pandemic is properly contained

While it definitely looks like Singapore is on track to become economically viable once again, experts mention that the outlook is uncertain because of the uneven recovery seen across sectors. While the manufacturing sector is expected to grow strongly due to the global recovery and robust electronics demand, the tourism sector will continue to see slower growth due to the ongoing pandemic containment measures and the slow pace of vaccination in most countries.

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These funds will also help manage new equity and fixed income, which will be focused on climate change and the environment. The announcement was made by managing director Ravi Menon while launching the central bank’s first sustainability report.

Menon said in a statement, “The GIP will help to enhance the climate resilience of the official foreign reserves, attract sustainability-focused asset managers to Singapore and catalyse funding towards environmentally sustainable projects in Asia and beyond.”

The five appointed asset managers will establish their regional sustainability hubs in the country itself and will also launch new thematic funds focused on environmental, social, and corporate governance (ESG). They will also focus on building green finance with the help of in-house and external training programmes in order to generate in-depth research on ESG and green financial technology effort.

MAS will also consult with the industry sometime later this year in order to discuss the compulsory climate-related disclosures by the financial bodies while focusing on transitioning these expectations into legally binding requirements, according to the global standards.

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The new digital exchange by DBS Bank will use blockchain technology and will permit trading of four types of assets which are bitcoin, bitcoin cash, ether and XRP.

DBS Chief Executive Piyush Gupta told the media, “I believe that the time is right for this (digital assets) industry to increasingly find partnership and sponsorship from the formal banking sector. There are thousands of different coins today being traded on different exchanges, and increasingly you are beginning to find that they are forming an important part of the asset allocation of wealth and private investors. We are on the cusp of a massive tokenisation and therefore you’ll find tokenisation of all kinds of assets around the world and I think more and more exchanges will start dealing with tokenised assets.”

Recently, it was also reported that DBS Bank, along with JP Morgan and Temasek are leading the development of a digital multi-currency payments network. The new payments network will aim at enhancing commercial cross-border clearing and settlements globally. Pilot trials for the project will start next year, according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

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A total of 21 different firms and consortiums applied for digital banking licences in Singapore; however, according to MAS, only 14 of them met the required criteria. Other parties such as Arrival Bank, Bytedance, Tiktok and iFast Group also applied for licences.

In June 2019, the Monetary Authority of Singapore first announced that it will issue two digital banking licences and three digital wholesale banking licences. The apex bank was expected to announce the name of the successful applicants in June 2020; however, the process was delayed by the coronavirus pandemic.

Anthony Tan, chief executive officer and co-founder of Grab, in a statement, “We expect them to thrive alongside the incumbent banks and raise the industry’s bar in delivering quality financial services, particularly for currently underserved businesses and individuals,” said MAS MD Ravi Menon in a statement. A handful of countries, including the UK, India and Hong Kong, have streamlined their regulations in recent years to grant tech companies the ability to operate as digital banks.

Ride-hailing firm Grab and telecom operator Singtel formed a consortium last year to apply for the digital full bank license. Their combined experience and expertise will allow them to empower more people to gain better control of their money and achieve better economic outcomes for themselves, their businesses and families, Tan added.

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currently being used by a large tech company for cross-border payments, media reports

said. The announcement was made by JP Morgan earlier this year and has also been

used during the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) trials of central bank digital

currencies (CBDC).

It has also launched a new division dedicated for its blockchain projects, called Onyx. It

is reported that Umar Farooq, who has headed up JP Morgan’s blockchain projects to

date, will take over the role of chief executive at Onyx.

Takis Georgakopoulos, Global, Head of Wholesale Payments, JPMorgan Chase told the media, “We are launching Onyx because we believe we are shifting to a period of commercialisation of those technologies, moving from research and development to something that can become a real business.”

Recently, the Bank of Japan announced that it will start testing a central bank digital

currency (CBDC) in early fiscal 2021. The BOJ said that it will create a system on the

internet, where the basic functions of the CBDC, including its issuance and circulation,

will be tested.

Cambodia has also officially launched its central bank-backed digital currency earlier

this week. The project is called Bakong, and is an initiative of the National Bank of

Cambodia. The new system will make payments easier and facilitate cashless

transactions, Chea Serey, director general of the central bank, said during a news conference.

Central Bank of the Bahamas also launched what is being as the world’s first-ever central bank digital currency (CBDC).

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Construction activities in Singapore decreased by 44.7 percent in the third quarter of 2020 when compared to the same period in 2019. The drop is mainly due to sluggish resumption of activities due to safe management measures.

The retail sector in Singapore also underperformed. It recorded a drop in retail sales in August by 6 percent. F&B Services Index went down 3 percent in August from July figures but recovered 29 percent in July when compared to June.

The SGX report further revealed that when it comes to employment, most jobs are created in the information and communications, food services, professional services, healthcare, finance and the insurance sector.

The Monetary Authority of Singapore(MAS) last month through a survey forecasted that Singapore’s GDP will contract by 6 percent in 2020. In an earlier survey carried out in the month of June, MAS forecasted Singapore’s GDP to contract by 5.8 percent this year.

The Singapore Business Review reported that based on the survey’s mean probability distribution, the most likely outcome is for the economy to shrink by 5.1 to 7.1 percent in 2020. This accelerated from the earlier estimates of -6 percent to -4.1 percent.

The survey further reveals that the GDP will grow next year despite a contraction this year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

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The new asset management firm set up by Temasek is called Seviora Holdings and it will have assets under management worth $55 billion.

It is reported that the new entity will be set up as the operational holding company for four existing asset management companies currently wholly-owned by or affiliated to Temasek. Those firms are Azalea Investment Management, Fullerton Fund Management Company, InnoVen Capital and Seatown Holdings International.

According to Temasek, Seviora will be based in Singapore with its own management team. The primary focus of the firm will be to provide access to a range of investment strategies across return profiles, asset classes and geographies.

According to an annual survey by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), assets supervised by Singapore-based managers grew by 15.7 percent to reach a total of about $4 trillion by the end of last year.

During the same period, the number of registered and licensed asset managers also rose in tandem, bringing the total to 895.

“Despite the ongoing Covid-19 pandemic and lingering uncertainty on the full extent of its implications on the asset management industry, Singapore continues to be an attractive place for business,” MAS said in its report.

Earlier this year, China approved a wealth management joint venture (JV) between Temasek, US-based investment giant BlackRock and China Construction Bank (CCB).

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In an earlier survey carried out in the month of June, Singapore’s GDP was expected to
contract by 5.8 percent this year.

The Singapore Business Review reported that based on the survey’s mean probability
distribution, the most likely outcome is for the economy to shrink by 5.1 to 7.1 percent
in 2020. This accelerated from the earlier estimates of -6 percent to -4.1 percent.

The survey further reveals that the GDP will grow next year despite a contraction this
year due to the coronavirus pandemic.

Singapore’s GDP is to grow by 5.5 percent next year. The respondents that participated
in the survey carried out by MAS estimates that the economy is most likely to grow by 4
percent to 5.9 percent in 2021.

In the second quarter, GDP contracted by 12.6 percent year-on-year, according to the
Ministry of Trade and Industry.

It is also 8 percentage points higher than the 11.8 percent contraction expected by the
Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

On a quarterly basis, the economy shrank by 41.2 percent.

It possibly marked the start of a recession for Singapore.

On the positive side, the manufacturing sector grew by 2.5 percent year-on-year in the
second quarter. However, the growth rate is much smaller when we compare it to the
8.2 percent growth the sector achieved during the previous quarter.

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It is also 8 percentage points higher than the 11.8 percent contraction expected by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS).

On a quarterly basis, the economy shrank by 41.2 percent.

This could possibly mark the start of a recession for Singapore.

On the positive side, the manufacturing sector grew by 2.5 percent year-on-year in the second quarter. However, the growth rate is much smaller when we compare it to the 8.2 percent growth the sector achieved during the previous quarter.

Furthermore, the construction sector contracted by 54.7 percent year-on-year in the second quarter, a significant deterioration from the 1.1 percent dip in the first quarter.

Last week, a report by United Overseas Bank (UOB) forecasted that Singapore’s gross domestic product in the second quarter of 2020 may contract by 34.6 percent if we compare it to the first quarter.

Barnabas Gan, an economist at UOB said, “We note that the uncertainty surrounding the length and severity of COVID-19, as well as the emergence of renewed US-China tensions continue to cloud Singapore’s trade prospects. Collectively, the quick deterioration of economic prospects both globally and domestically is expected to weaken Singapore’s labour market.”

According to the ministry of labour, the unemployment rate in Singapore also increased to 2.4 percent in the first quarter.

According to economists and analysts polled in a survey by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) last month, its economy is expected to contract by 5.8 percent this year.

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Singapore’s gross domestic product (GDP) in the second quarter of 2020 may contract by 34.6 percent if we compare it to the first quarter, according to a report by UOB.

Singapore’s second quarter GDP will contract by 10.5 percent when compared to the same period in 2019.

For Singapore, this could possibly mark the start of a recession.

Barnabas Gan,  an economist at UOB said, “We note that the uncertainty surrounding the length and severity of COVID-19, as well as the emergence of renewed US-China tensions continue to cloud Singapore’s trade prospects. Collectively, the quick deterioration of economic prospects both globally and domestically is expected to weaken Singapore’s labour market.”

According to the ministry of labour, the unemployment rate in Singapore also increased to 2.4 percent in the first quarter.

According to economists and analysts polled in a survey by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) last month, its economy is expected to contract by 5.8 percent this year.

In a similar survey carried out by the central bank earlier, the participants predicted a growth rate of 0.6 percent for Singapore.

The forecast comes as survey respondents cited an escalation in the COVID-19 pandemic as a key downside risk to Singapore’s growth outlook.

The contractions are mainly attributed to the coronavirus pandemic which has pushed the global economy into recession.

In Singapore, the lockdown measures introduced to curb the spread of the virus has also affected the city-state severely. When it comes to the construction sector, the MAS survey forecasts that it will contract 11.4 percent this year.

Private consumption is expected to contract by 5.2 percent.

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