Singapore to roll out grant to assist businesses adapt to tariffs

New Straits Times

4 days ago

SINGAPORE: Singapore is set to launch a new grant by October 2025 to help businesses adapt to the new tariff environment, the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce (SERT) announced on Thursday.
Manpower Minister Tan See Leng said the Business Adaptation Grant will be capped at S$100,000 (S$1 = RM3.31) per company, with small and medium enterprises (SMEs) likely to receive a higher level of support.
"The SMEs, we will be more generous in terms of allocation of the grant itself, because they actually account for about two-thirds of our workforce in Singapore, a significant proportion of them are Singaporeans," he told a media conference, alongside other members of SERT.
The scope of the grant will enable enterprises that export to and/or operate in overseas markets and are impacted by tariff measures to conduct free trade agreements and trade compliance advisory, legal and contractual advisory, as well as supply chain optimisation and market diversification.
It will also support enterprises with manufacturing operations overseas or locally, who may receive assistance for reconfiguration costs, such as logistics and inventory holding expenses.
Tan said additional details on the grant will be announced in due course.
Meanwhile, Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong said the latest series of tariffs announced by the United States (US) will likely prolong uncertainty, volatility, and challenges for global economies.
"We hope that negotiations and consultations will continue, and that the US will be able to reach deals with these countries to bring about lower tariffs and trade barriers," he said, adding that Singapore continued to be subject to a 10 per cent baseline tariff.
Gan, who also serves as Trade and Industry Minister, shared that he will travel to the US later this month to continue discussions on potential US concessions on pharmaceutical tariffs and hold talks with the US administration on broader economic collaboration between the two countries.
US President Donald Trump had previously stated his intention to introduce tariffs on imported pharmaceuticals.
"We have not commenced a discussion on semiconductors. We will probably touch on semiconductors after we have settled the pharmaceuticals discussion with the Department of Commerce," Gan said.
Meanwhile, Gan noted that the economy is likely to hold up relatively well in the first half of this year, as businesses have been preparing to adjust to the new tariff realities.
"However, given the expectation of higher tariffs going forward, as well as the diminishing front-loading effect, we will likely see slower economic growth over the next six to 12 months," he said.