Singapore poised for first sales tax hike in more than a decade

SINGAPORE (Feb 13): Singapore, a city-state famed for the low-tax model that helped transform it from a gritty port town to an Asian Manhattan, is expected to put something unusual in this year's government budget announcement: A tax hike.

Nine of 10 economists polled by Reuters think authorities on Monday will unveil the first rise in the goods and services tax (GST) since 2007. Policymakers have flagged the need to increase revenue to meet future social spending needs of a rapidly ageing population.

Economists say Finance Minister Heng Swee Keat might also make tweaks to taxes on e-commerce retailers such as Amazon.com Inc, wealth and sugar when he presents the budget, at 3.30pm on Monday, for the year starting April 1.

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