Question
Ms Hazel Poa: To ask the Minister for Trade and Industry (a) whether the Ministry tracks rental cost as a percentage of total business cost for businesses in Singapore; and (b) if so, what is this percentage for each year from 2000 to 2021.
Written Answer by Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong
1. The Department of Statistics and the Economic Development Board compile data on business costs, including rental costs, of firms in the services and manufacturing sectors, respectively.
2. Data on the share of rental costs in total business costs in the services and manufacturing sectors as a whole for the period of 2000 to 2020 (latest available data) are provided in Table 1. Over this period, the share of rental costs in total business costs was relatively stable, at around 3.1% on average.
Table 1. Rental Costs as a Percentage of Total Business Costs (2000 to 2020)
|
Year |
Rental Costs as a Percentage of Total Business Costs |
|
2000 |
3.1% |
|
2001 |
3.2% |
|
2002 |
3.6% |
|
2003 |
3.4% |
|
2004 |
3.1% |
|
2005 |
2.8% |
|
2006 |
2.5% |
|
2007 |
2.5% |
|
2008 |
2.8% |
|
2009 |
3.2% |
|
2010 |
3.2% |
|
2011 |
3.2% |
|
2012 |
3.2% |
|
2013 |
3.2% |
|
2014 |
3.2% |
|
2015 |
3.2% |
|
2016 |
3.2% |
|
2017 |
3.1% |
|
2018 |
2.9% |
|
2019 |
3.0% |
|
2020 |
2.8% |
|
Average |
3.1% |
Sources: DOS, EDB