Lee called 2023 a “challenging year” where tensions between the US and China remain and the war in Ukraine is at a “strategic stalemate with no resolution in sight.” He pointed to global “revulsion and anger” over the human suffering in the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Singapore’s economy avoided a recession in 2023 as Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong warned of a “troubled” international environment that will weigh on growth and security.
Gross domestic product expanded 1.2%, Lee said in his New Year’s message, compared with the trade ministry’s forecast in November for an expansion of around 1%. For 2024, he reiterated an official projection for growth of 1% to 3%.
