Covid-19 Solidarity Budget

Market watchers are looking at a 7.6% y-o-y contraction in the GDP for 3Q2020

market watchers are looking at a 7.6% y-o-y contraction in the GDP for 3Q2020

On Aug 17, the government announced another $8 billion package to battle the bug, as cracks in Singapore’s economy deteriorate.

“The government’s financial support will not be sufficient to [cover] revenue lost by companies [but] we hope they are enough for companies to tide over this period, without having to lay off their staff,” says SBF CEO Ho Meng Kit.

“Safe-distancing measures and weaker labour market will dampen consumer demand, thereby capping prices increases for discretionary goods and services,” note MAS and MTI.

“We must make these hard decisions, make the difficult adjustments, and do all that we can in the next few months, to protect the lives of our people,” says DPM Heng on the month-long circuit-breaker

In a Tuesday report, DBS Group Research analyst says companies in sectors other than travel and tourism with a relatively high employee count stand to benefit the most from wage subsidies.

“This is a much-needed steroid shot, where the government is using a holistic approach to reach out to firms already under stress,” says OCBC’s Head of Treasury research and strategy, Selena Ling.