Since Lee took office in 2004, the Singapore dollar has appreciated about 40 percent against the currencies of town’s predominant trading partners, greater than twice the rise of the U.S. dollar in the identical context, based on data compiled by Bloomberg.
Singaporean newspaper Shanmugam hits back at ‘sneering’ Economist magazine article on Wong’s succession
Singaporean newspaper Shanmugam hits back at ‘sneering’ Economist magazine article on Wong’s succession
Over the identical period, Singapore government bond total returns outpaced global bond yields by about 16 percentage points.
The popularity of Singapore’s currency and sovereign debt is underpinned by an economy that has greater than doubled to A$532.3 billion ($391 billion) under Lee’s 20-year leadership, which ends on May 15, and total assets under management have increased by greater than eight times to A$4.9 trillion (US$3.6 trillion).
Lee has also transformed the small island into considered one of the world’s most vital financial centers and a lovely destination for global talent.
The city’s stock exchange can also be a giant beneficiary of the strong local currency. In US dollar terms, the Straits Times Index has outperformed the MSCI Asean Index, a gauge of Singapore’s Southeast Asian neighbors, by almost 32 percentage points since Lee took office.
That said, greater than half of local publicly traded corporations are trading below book value, reflecting the dearth of high-growth corporations within the small, mature economy, based on data reported by Bloomberg.
“Wong can take steps to support local action,” said Nirgunan Tiruchelvam, director of consumer and web at Aletheia Capital.
“It is possible that domestic wealth funds will be able to invest more money in local markets. It may also consider increasing incentives for companies listing on the Singapore market.”
