Singapore Economic Roundtable

The Singapore Economic Roundtable (SER) is a twice-a-year meeting of a select group of senior private sector economists, academics, business leaders and policymakers. The Roundtable is conducted in line with Chatham House rules and is intended to generate a frank discussion of major macro-economic policy issues facing Singapore. Each SER assesses current monetary and fiscal policy in the light of changing economic circumstances and provides a forum for non-policymakers to air their recommendations. In addition, each SER also takes a detailed look at a longer-term structural issue facing Singapore. Some special topics in recent years included public debt and intergenerational equity in Singapore, sustainability and the implications of BEPS on Singapore’s investment and financial hub status.

The 35th SER held on 15 October 2021 featured a special session with Mr Lawrence Wong. In one of his first major speeches as Finance Minister, he outlined the challenges and principles of Singapore’s fiscal system and spoke on studying options to expand its system of wealth taxes while staying competitive, such as implementing stamp duties on residential properties, property taxes and additional registration fees on motor vehicles.

Mr Wong summed up Singapore’s key challenges into three areas: inequality, demographics and climate change. He also announced that the carbon tax rate will be revised from 2024.

“Since its inception, the topics discussed at the SER has become more diverse and complex, reflecting the changing trends and events influencing global economic outlook. Being an open trading economy and a “price-taker”, issues like the deglobalisation of the world economy, realignment and disruption of supply chain networks will impact the Singapore economy. In a more volatile, uncertain, complex and ambiguous (VUCA) world, the SER has renewed significance.

Convened under Chatham House rules, it is also a platform for policymakers to elucidate thinking behind policy formulation and implementation. This engagement enables the participating economists, bankers and corporate leaders to provide timely and constructive feedback to policymakers. Thereafter, the proceedings are published for dissemination to a wider audience.”

- Dr Faizal Yahya, Senior Research Fellow, Governance and Economy