SINGAPORE: Singapore is set to deliver a strong budget this week to offset the damage to the economy from the Covid-19 (coronavirus) outbreak, with analysts predicting the biggest deficit in almost two decades.
The fiscal gap may widen to 1.5% of gross domestic product in the year beginning April 1, the highest since the 1.7% shortfall recorded in the 2001 financial year, according to the median estimate in a Bloomberg survey of economists.
"Budget 2020 comes at an opportune time for a more expansionary fiscal stance to provide a much needed lift to buffer the downside growth risks,” said Selena Ling, head of research and strategy at Oversea-Chinese Banking Corporation Ltd in Singapore. That’s what Singapore is likely to deliver, with Minister Lawrence Wong, co-chair of the government’s task force on the virus response, saying in a Feb. 12 interview that a"strong” economic package is coming in the budget.
Here’s a look at what else Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat, who is also the Finance Minister, may deliver in his budget speech in Parliament on Tuesday afternoon in Singapore:Small and medium-sized enterprises traditionally have been key winners in the Singapore budget, given the government’s priority to boost its homegrown firms within and beyond its borders.
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