MAS expects growth, hiring to rise as inflation eases into 2025

Companies in Singapore are expected to increase their output for the rest of 2024 and in 2025 on the back of improving global economic conditions, which will boost corporate finances and hiring capacity over the period, said the Republic's central bank.

- Ovais Subhani

That is expected to support the Singapore economy for 2024, with growth expected near the upper end of the 2 per cent to 3 per cent range forecast by the Ministry of Trade and Industry, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) said in its biannual Macroeconomic Review report.

The economy will grow at a similar pace in 2025, added the report, which was released on Oct 28.

Lower import prices and slower domestic wage growth will pull inflation down to within a range of 1.5 per cent to 2.5 per cent on average in 2025, significantly lower than the peaks seen over the past two years.

"Hiring should be supported in the coming quarters as wage growth moderates and employers see profitability and business prospects improve," MAS said.

"The firming economic activity should thus provide some impetus to labour demand and put a floor to any weakness in the labour market."

MAS noted that a Department of Statistics business expectations survey for the services sector already shows an uptick in employment expansion plans for the third quarter of 2024, driven by tourism-related companies.