This surpasses pre-pandemic levels and comes after a dip in 2020 for the first time in a decade. In comparison, monthly total household income stood at $9,425 in 2019 before the Covid-19 pandemic caused tremors to both the local and global economy.
While Singaporeans brace themselves for an imminent hike in the goods and services tax (GST), the government has announced that the economy saw a rebound in 2021. The republic’s economic growth for 4Q2021 ended December 2021 expanded by 6.1% y-o-y, slower than the 7.5% in the preceding quarter, according to the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on Feb 17. Even so, full-year growth for 2021 came in at 7.6%, up from the 7.1% flagged in the advanced estimates released early this year. The government has also revised its 2020 GDP report to a contraction of 4.1% from a drop of 5.4% announced previously.
In tandem with the stronger economy, median household income has increased by 3.6% in nominal terms (or before adjusting for inflation), to $9,520 per month in 2021, from $9,189 in 2020. After taking inflation into account, this works out to a 1.5% increase in real terms.
