Opening Remarks by DPM and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong at the Joint Press Conference for the 14th SAJMC

1. Good afternoon. Welcome to this press conference. My colleagues, Ministers Vivian Balakrishnan and Ng Eng Hen and I are pleased to meet with Deputy Prime Minister Richard Marles and Ministers Don Farrell and Penny Wong for the Singapore-Australia Joint Ministerial Committee. Today’s meeting marks the 14th round, a testament to the strong and enduring relationship between our two nations – one built on mutual trust and respect, complementarity as well as our strategic interests, and a shared vision for an open and inclusive region. These elements will be especially crucial as we navigate a world that is increasingly volatile and complex. 

2. We had a very fruitful meeting this afternoon, not just to take stock of what we are already working on, but to discuss how we can take our relationship to the next level. We have a wide-ranging bilateral relationship, spanning areas such as defence, trade, energy, as well as our cooperation in various multilateral platforms. I will speak briefly about our economic cooperation. 

3. Singapore and Australia are among each other’s top 10 largest trading partners. Our total bilateral trade in goods in 2023 amounted to S$29.6 billion, a 16% increase from ten years ago. Two-way investments have also increased, with Singapore being the sixth largest foreign investor in Australia in 2023, and Australian investments into Singapore doubling over the last ten years.

4. Singapore and Australia have collaborated on several leading-edge economic initiatives such as the Singapore-Australia Digital Economy Agreement and the Singapore-Australia Green Economy Agreement, which have become pathfinders for many bilateral and regional collaboration in these new and emerging areas. We also jointly developed the Ten Principles to Guide the Development of Cross-Border Electricity Trading, as announced at our Annual Leaders’ Meeting in March this year. 

5. We continue to find new ways to expand bilateral cooperation. We are now working on the next phase of the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership for 2025 to 2035. Singapore looks forward to embarking on ambitious, forward-looking initiatives with Australia, such as in food security and energy and climate change cooperation. 

6. We are also actively working together to nurture and bolster the rules-based multilateral trading system, with the WTO at its core. For example, Singapore and Australia, together with Japan, co-convene the Joint Statement Initiative on Electronic Commerce at the WTO, which aims to deliver the first-ever set of comprehensive global digital rules among Members. Besides the WTO, Singapore and Australia are partner economies on various multilateral and plurilateral fora, such as the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC), Indo-Pacific Economic Framework for Prosperity (IPEF), Regional Comprehensive Economic Partnership (RCEP) and Comprehensive and Progressive Agreement for Trans-Pacific Partnership (CPTPP). 

7. I look forward to our continued close cooperation with our partners on these platforms, to ensure that we are able to advance our interests for an open and connected world. I also look forward to strengthening our bilateral partnership, especially as we celebrate our 60th anniversary of establishment of diplomatic relations next year. Thank you.