Transcript of Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong’s opening and closing remarks at the SERT Press Conference

Thank you for joining us here this morning.

Since the beginning of this week, President Trump has issued letters to more than 20 countries setting out their new ‘reciprocal’ tariff rates.

I had hoped that after the 90-day pause, the tariffs will be settled somewhat at a lower level, that will facilitate global trade as well as allow economic growth to gain momentum.

Among countries in Asia, while those for Cambodia, Laos, Myanmar and Sri Lanka were reduced, the tariffs for Brunei, Japan, Malaysia and the Philippines were raised.

This will likely prolong the uncertainty, volatility and challenges for economies around the world.

We hope that negotiations and consultations will continue, and that the US will be able to reach deals with these countries to bring about lower tariffs and trade barriers.

President Trump has also just announced a 50% tariff on copper, effective from 1 August. He also said that the US will impose tariffs on pharmaceuticals very soon, although the pharmaceutical levies may only go into effect a year or more later on. He has also signalled that the US may impose an additional 10% tariff on imports from BRICS nations.

The signs point to the fact that the tariffs are here to stay. We must therefore be prepared for a longer period of uncertainty over the tariffs that the US will impose on specific countries and on specific products.

For Singapore, we continue to be subject to a 10% baseline tariff.

I had previously mentioned that the US had offered potential tariff concessions on our pharmaceutical exports to the US. We are in discussions with our counterparts from the Department of Commerce, to better understand their expectations and to explore practical and implementable approaches for our companies.

As discussions with the US are ongoing, I will not be able to share more details at this point, but I will continue to keep you updated on the developments, whenever possible.

I will also be travelling to the US later this month to meet with my counterparts in the Administration, as well as to meet with US business representatives and other personalities. This will allow us to get a better understanding of the US’ concerns, their priorities, their interests, and to explore opportunities that we can work on together to strengthen the bilateral relationship that has so far been mutually beneficial.

There are also potential opportunities that our businesses here in Singapore can explore in the US, such as in AI, technology and advanced manufacturing.

In the meantime, my colleagues and I in the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce (SERT) have been speaking to our businesses and our workers to assess the impact of the tariff-related developments on them, as well as how we can better support them to navigate these uncertainties.

On the whole, businesses have been preparing to adjust to the new tariff realities.

Some have taken advantage of the ongoing pause in reciprocal tariffs to frontload their exports to the US. As a result, our economy is likely to hold up relatively well in the first half of this year.

However, given the expectation of higher tariffs going forward, as well as the diminishing frontloading effect, we will likely see slower economic growth over the next 6 to 12 months.

We have also observed that some firms are thinking ahead and exploring options to restructure their supply chains, diversify their export markets, and develop new products and services.

Josephine and Siong Seng will share more about the feedback from businesses, and how we are supporting them in their sensemaking.

At the same time, we are assessing how we can better support businesses to adapt to the evolving tariff situation.

Today, we already have a number of schemes that companies can tap on to enter into new markets, transform their businesses, innovate, and get access to financing.

To enhance our enterprise support, we will introduce a new grant scheme to help companies with operations in overseas markets defray the advisory costs in areas such as FTA and trade compliance issues, legal and contractual matters, and supply chain and market diversification.

See Leng will share more later on this.

Our workers are also likewise feeling unsettled by the ongoing volatilities and uncertainties.

To date, the labour market remains stable for the time being.

Nevertheless, we recognise that those who have just graduated or are about to graduate may be feeling anxious about their job prospects.

See Leng and Chee Meng will share how the Government and NTUC will step up our efforts to support our fresh graduates. I would also encourage our fresh graduates to keep their options wide open, and be flexible to tap on the opportunities out there.

Hee Teck will also share how SNEF is working with the various employers to support our tripartite efforts to help businesses and workers.

I will now invite my fellow SERT members to speak. First, maybe Josephine can give an update on the situation.

Closing

Thank you very much. Let me just quickly wrap up with a few closing remarks.

First, let me reiterate that there are still significant uncertainties with regard to the US tariff framework, how countries will respond to the latest round of tariff adjustments, and how the global economy will be reshaped as a result of these developments.

Nevertheless, there remain opportunities for businesses and our workers.

The Business Adaptation Grant which we announced just now will help businesses adjust to the new realities, adjust to the new opportunities, and also seize these opportunities to continue to grow.

Our tripartite partners, the Government, the unions, the Singapore National Employers’ Federation, will also lean forward to provide support to our workers and workforce, and will do more when necessary.

We will continue to keep a close watch on the developments, and update media and public when these opportunities arise.

But beyond the immediate challenges I mentioned, we are also keeping an eye on the longer-term horizon. Even as the economic landscape evolves, it is important for us to plan ahead and take action to ensure that our economy will continue to grow and Singapore will continue to remain relevant to the rest of the world.

Ultimately, we have to ensure that our businesses and our workers can do well in future. Our focus remains very clear, which is to protect livelihoods, strengthen our resilience, and keep Singapore moving forward. We will share more about our long-term strategy later.

I will now open the floor to questions.