Pineapple Tarts, a MUST for CNY:
Kong Xi Fa Cai !!!
(Or Kung Hei Fat Choy in Cantonese)
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Expats are leaving Singapore in droves.
No, it is not because of lack of political freedom, strict rules on littering, smoking, or chewing gum, but due to strict Covid-19 restrictions:
But Singapore may be gaining some cats due to even stricter Covid-19 rules in Hong Kong:
Yep, lots of damage being done to companies at all levels.
Most think the gov is killing the place
Singapore without foreigners and foreign investment will end up as a port and an airport.
( they are struggling to unload a ship now)
Chatting to a relative who is a Partner at a large accounting firm she says we are down 30% in staff numbers and so are all the others, turning lots of work away, companies struggling to get audits done.
Foreign staff left and they cant get any more.
The good news is Keppel re valued their assets so made a profit and hence can issue a dividend.
( typical of a government linked company)
Then
Then buys another GLC that only loses money
Its all about the headlines.
The Singapore Chamber of Maritime Arbitration (SCMA) provides a framework for maritime and international trade arbitrations:
New rules reflecting the New World of Arbitration:
I often thought that was the case when I was there way before Covid. It seemed to me there was not a low wage Singaporean labor class. The business class imported people from Bangladesh and other countries to fill that role while the “middle class” Singaporeans found themselves priced out of affordable housing by the foreigners. Perhaps a happy medium will be arrived at eventually. If not? At least the airport is nice.
The first decade of independence (1965-75) Singapore was struggling to create jobs and decent housing for it’s population.
They succeeded against all odds by attracting foreign investment and industry to set up shop there and developed from a 3rd world to a 1st world economy in a little over one generation.
Shortage of labour necessitated bringing in skilled and unskilled workers from neighbouring countries and beyond to fill the need as the small pool of workers available locally was not enough.
This incl. management positions, both in manufacturing, shipping and finance, hence the requirements to obtain Employment Pass and Permanent Residency was eased and all efforts made to attract foreign talents. At the same time the education system was strengthened to get more and better qualified local managers and entrepreneurs.
I don’t know where you get that from. 80% of Singaporeans live in HDB flats that they own themselves. These are financed by grants for first time buyers and by their CPF savings until the flats are paid down.
Foreigners are not allowed to buy HDB flats and landed properties, only flats that is in condos over 5 stories high.
The fact that Singapore is among the most expensive places to live is also a factor that counts when people look at where they want to live, work and play.
In the last few years a lot of things have been turned upside down by the pandemic and may never turn back to the same as before.
Don’t fu*k with our Chicken Curry:
It could have been worse, they could have tried to fu*k with our Hainanese Chicken Rice:
That would have been a deadly sin!!!
PS> Every Singaporean has a favourit Chicken Rice Hawker stall and can’t stop telling you about it.
Foreigners can buy landed properties for many years now, thats to boost prices and it does.
Only restriction is heritage ones
PS HDB is leasehold, spend your life paying then give it back.You invested your pension in that…
The majority of Singaporeans are being priced out of most things as Singapore is a tax haven for the rich and they they keep coming.
Pleasure boat ownership has swung from majority local 70’s 80’ to majority foreign now.
It has just made obvious the Singapore gov policy over the years.
They were taught to compete you get cheap labour hence the very low productivity of Singapore.
Singapores job is to supply cheap labour and thats foreign and they are leaving, thats whats new.
Labour starts to cost more and they dont know how to compete as they never had to with such a low cost base.
Singapore airlines first world standard made lots of money years ago with very low cost base now it has competition along with rising currency plus increased wage costs so it cant compete.
A couple of generations of management that never had to compete leaves a large gap in skills. That wont get fixed overnight.
All you ever wanted to know about buying property in Singapore:
https://www.propertyguru.com.sg/property-guides/step-by-step-guide-for-buying-property-in-singapore-as-a-foreigner-12304
Luckily the unqualified local Managers and Government that “don’t know how to compete as they never had to with such a low cost base” have all these bright Expats to guide them.
If it was for them Singapore MAY fall below in GDP per capita relative to their former Colonial Masters and other lackluster western economies.
(Or countries that can just dig up their natural resources and sell it to China)
DOH
GDP per capita reflects the billionaires, and FDI, Singapore has one of the worst wealth gaps in the world and lowest productivity, that means output per person is very low.
Build 2 casinos and take billions from foreigners, GDP goes up
Economics 101
You are as ill informed as the HDB voters in Singapore which all the press is designed for.
So yes the local managers are low skilled as measured economically by their output.
One persons idea on GDP is like inflation, just depends on what you choose to include or not.
So Singapore high gdp from very low productive workers. mmmm I wonder how those 2 numbers sit side by side?
convincing the public you are better off when we raise GST…
Read the comments to see how a Singaporean views this
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The GST tax is fair enough but what is Singapore’s wealth tax? Last I heard the income tax was a maximum of 22% but the tax on capital gains was 0%. The wealthy will never feel the increase in the GST, only people who work for salary.
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Singapore has been struggling with the question of Wealth Tax for some time.
As a country with no natural resources (not even land for agriculture) it is important to attract foreign investment and retain wealth in the country by having low tax, both personal and corporate. At the same time it is necessary to have tax base large enough to maintain services and welfare for the common people.
Here is PM Lee’s view on the subject:
https://www.bloomberg.com/news/articles/2021-11-17/singapore-wealth-tax-not-so-easy-prime-minister-says
Here is a more scholarly, non-political and neutral view on the present and potential future Wealth Tax in Singapore:
https://www.jdsupra.com/legalnews/wealth-taxes-in-singapore-the-present-1182861/
Recreational fishing in the sea, reservoir, rivers and canals has increased due to restriction on travel and other recreational activity in Singapore,
But this also brings about unwanted problems:
PS> Singapore doesn’t have any licensing for recreational fishing. Restrictions on where fishing is allowed is in place, but hard to enforce.
True to form, bins for used fishing gear has been set up in areas popular for fishing:
Fishing hook bins have been placed at designated fishing sites at Marina, Bedok and Pandan reservoirs. (Photo: FB/Ottercity)
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