S'pore losing export edge to neighbors
S'pore losing export edge to neighbors
SINGAPORE (AFP): Singapore is losing ground in export
competitiveness against emerging "tigers" Malaysia and Thailand
but gaining against East Asian and industrial countries,
according to results of a study published yesterday.
The Business Times said that based on a "relative export
competitiveness index" developed at the local Nanyang
Technological University, Singapore was losing against fellow
members of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN).
The index measures the difference between a country's export
prices and those of its competitors in their common markets in
U.S. dollar terms.
This was said to be a more accurate measure than mere
comparisons of labor unit cost used by the government.
The issue of eroding competitiveness was a key concern at a
meeting of Singapore policy-makers and academics on Wednesday,
the newspaper said.
But Singapore, whose main industries include electronics,
chemicals and services, was found to have sharpened its edge
against East Asian countries like Hong Kong and Taiwan, and
industrial nations belonging to the Organization for Economic
Cooperation and Development (OECD).
Analysts say Singapore has to contend with rising wages and
other costs as well as the strong local dollar in competing with
neighbors, but offers stability, clear rules, a strike-free
environment and superior infrastructure.
On another area in which Singapore has lost ground -- the
retail sector -- the daily said an economist warned that the
city-state must find ways to lure back local shoppers who have
found it cheaper to engage in their favorite pastime overseas
than at home.
Because of the strong Singapore dollar, high rentals and
soaring salaries of sales personnel, Singaporeans now find it
cheaper to go to new shopping meccas like Bangkok, Kuala Lumpur
and Jakarta than shop at home.
According to one unofficial estimate, Singaporeans spent S$2.6
billion (US$1.86 billion) shopping in neighboring Malaysia alone
in 1995. Both are separated only by a causeway, and the nearby
Malaysian city of Johor Bahru has become a virtual shopping mall
for Singaporeans.
Balance of payments data showed that total spending of
Singaporeans traveling abroad had risen by an average of 20
percent a year since 1992, the newspaper added.
Friedrich Wu, vice president and head of economic research at
DBS Bank Ltd., said that if the amount spent on shopping had
similarly surged, it would mean very bad news for local
retailers."