Key exports
US President Donald Trump announced a 90-day tariff pause for most countries on April 9 but escalated his trade war with China, deepening the standoff. For Singapore, the broader reprieve offers little relief. The economy continues to face a baseline 10% tariff, and several locally listed manufacturers with regional production networks are grappling with even greater pressure. The widely adopted “China+1” strategy has been effectively undermined, weakening their ability to cushion the blow.
“Most of the tech stocks under our coverage have adopted a ‘China+1’ strategy to mitigate the previous trade tariffs but will now face tariffs in Malaysia and Vietnam where production diversification has taken place,” write CGS International analysts Lock Mun Yee and Lim Siew Khee.
