Will taxes, monetary policy tightening and trade talks pose triple threat for Singapore economy in 2018?

(Dec 29): Singapore is bracing for possible tax increases and monetary policy tightening in 2018 against a backdrop of steady economic growth and benign inflation.

The city state’s economy will probably expand 2.8% next year compared with an estimated 3.3% this year, while inflation is forecast to pick up slowly, according to the median estimates in a Bloomberg survey. Gross domestic product probably rose an annualized 2.1% in the fourth quarter of 2017 from the previous three months, according to a separate survey ahead of data due Jan. 2.

While some economists including Selena Ling at Oversea-Chinese Banking Corp. say the potential domestic fiscal and monetary policy tightening may pose headwinds to the Singapore economy, they still see a "benign" macroeconomic environment with domestic growth drivers having broadened beyond manufacturing and electronics.

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