Singapore unveils US$1 billion package as cost of living rises amid inflation, Ukraine war

Adult Singaporeans earning below S$34,000 (US$24,500) a year will receive S$300 in cash in August, and every household will get S$100 to offset utilities

Meanwhile, even as Singapore last year collected higher revenue as the economy recovered, the government says it will push on with a planned GST increase from 7 to 9 per cent

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Singapore’s central bank expects core inflation to surge further over coming months. Photo: AFP

Published: 4:13pm, 21 Jun 2022Updated: 12:20am, 22 Jun 2022

Singapore on Tuesday unveiled a S$1.5 billion (US$1.08 billion) package to cushion lower-income families from rising global inflation, with officials warning that the Ukraine war and supply chain disruptions would keep the cost of living high for some time.

Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong said the latest “support package” would benefit about 1.5 million Singaporeans and would be funded from higher-than-expected revenues collected in the last financial year.

The city state of 5.45 million collected higher revenue in the year March due to its strong economic recovery, and spent less than what it had set aside for Covid-19 related measures.

Still, the government will go ahead with a planned two-stage increase in its goods and services tax (GST) from 7 to 9 per cent, Wong, who is also the finance minister, told local media.

The finance ministry said the Ukraine war and pandemic-linked supply disruptions were among the factors that “led to a sharper than expected rise in inflation across the major economies”.