Singapore’s central bank has eased monetary policy for the first time in four years amid rising expectations of trade turmoil after Donald Trump’s return to the US presidency and moderating domestic inflation.
The Monetary Authority of Singapore on Friday said it would reduce the slope of the Singapore dollar’s appreciation against a basket of its trading partners’ currencies, citing anticipations of trade friction.
“Global economic policy uncertainty has risen since the October monetary policy review, mainly reflecting expectations of increasing trade policy frictions,” said the central bank.
The MAS has a long-term policy of allowing the Singapore dollar to gradually appreciate against other currencies. By reducing the slope of its appreciation, the monetary authority in effect lowers borrowing rates in the city-state’s heavily trade-dependent economy.
Inflation data released on Thursday showed the city’s core consumer price index rose 1.8 per cent in December from a year earlier, the second consecutive month of growth below 2 per cent.
Although the central bank does not have a hard inflation target, it has said a rate under 2 per cent “is consistent with overall price stability”.
Singapore’s small and open economy is highly exposed to global trade and financial flows, allowing the MAS to control lending rates through the exchange rate.
According to the central bank, 40 cents of every dollar spent in Singapore is on imports, while gross imports and exports of goods and services account for more than 300 per cent of GDP.
The Singapore dollar edged down in early trading on Friday to S$1.3561 a US dollar.