Despite economic mishaps, Singapore’s SMEs continue to grow: According to recent data, Singapore’s Covid-19 stint and ongoing inflation from the Ukraine-Russia conflict did not hinder growth for small- and medium-sized businesses (SMEs) during the second quarter 2022. A proactive plan of action, a grant from the government for SME and an effective response can explain the rapid economic recovery.
All industries are expanding, with four emerging from contraction: building and construction, education and retail.
The overall index read 52, an increase of 50.5 from the previous quarter. This marks six consecutive quarters of expansion. A reading above 50 indicates increased activity, and a reading below 50 signifies a decrease relative to the same period last year.
As global recovery continues, Q3 2022 will likely remain expansionary despite rising supply-side challenges.
With better performance across all industries, collections increased. The quarter’s gross national product (GDP), as Nowcast calculates it, was 5.8 percent compared to the 3.7 percent growth recorded in Q1 2022.
With the increase in consensus forecast of 4.8 per cent in Monetary Authority of Singapore’s survey to professional analysts in June, the latest Nowcast is considered “directionally aligned”.
The availability of grants for SMEs as well as strong cross-border trade has helped to sustain growth in wholesale trade, logistics, transport and manufacturing. The steady growth in transport and logistics was attributed to a strong showing by the logistics sub-sector. Both land and sea transport experienced an increase in the quarter. This was partly due to cross-border trade that is healthy. Land transport, however, has been expanding.
The previous quarter saw manufacturing see a 14% increase in annual collections due to consumer products. Innovators also saw a healthy 12 per cent increase in their annual collections.
The sub-sector electronics and semiconductors fell into contractionary territory, but is expected to rebound in the second half of the year.
F&B and business services have greatly benefited from the ease of dine-in restrictions and opening travel borders. The F&B industry saw a contraction in the quarter that ended in March, due to the lower safety distancing requirements being met by a constrained demand from larger dining events, and stronger visitor traffic.
Digitalization has seen a surge in popularity, which in turn drove ICT growth.
Education saw a slight improvement in the quarter due to an increase in recreation classes and early childhood education, as well as the removal of restrictions and a higher proportion of parents returning home to work. As foreign labor returns with the reopening borders, training centers will gain momentum.
SME owners who need additional capital to fund expansion or recovery can apply for the Singapore government grant for SMEs via banks. There are many financial support programs, grants, and subsidies that are available. You’re sure to find the right one for you with personalized options.
Considering government grants?
SME grants Singapore offers to entrepreneurs through bank assistance are also recommended. COVID-19 Relief Loans and SME Fixed Assets Financing, Merger & Acquisition; Venture Debt Loan; Enterprise Financing Scheme Trade Loan(EFS-TL); and Project Loan are some of the available grants.
