“Connecting Singapore to the World”
Mr Chairman,
Introduction
1. The global trading system is coming under severe strain. We are entering uncharted waters as DPM Gan said, marked by heightened geopolitical tensions, rise of economic nationalism, and supply chain disruptions.
2. Historically, Singapore has been the gateway to global trade, symbolised by our Singapore River, just outside this chamber. It has shaped our nation’s identity – open, connected, and adaptable to shifting global tides.
3. Rivers thrive when its waters flow freely, so too must we keep our economic pathways flowing. We can do that by connecting Singapore to the world, and connecting the world to Singapore.
Enhancing connections to people flows
4. We must always connect the world to Singapore, and flow people, businesses, and trade through our shores. Last year, we welcomed 16.5 million international visitors, and our tourism receipts for the first three quarters of 2024 soared to a historic high at $22.4 billion. They were drawn by the new and refreshed experiences we curated.
a. Our live entertainment scene sparkled last year, as we hosted international A-listers like Taylor Swift, Coldplay and Jay Chou. This year, we already have a few top acts, including Seventeen in January and G.E.M. over the weekend. We have a flow of exciting performances lined up this year as well, including our very own Stefanie Sun, KISS OF LIFE, BTS’ j-hope’s first solo concert, and BABYMONSTER.
b. We also saw strong flow on our Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions (MICE) front. Events like Singapore Airshow, Asia Pacific Maritime, and Food & Hotel Asia – Food & Beverage (FHA-F&B) all drew record numbers. I also hosted young leaders at last year’s World Economic Forum’s Young Global Leaders Annual Summit. And true to our positioning as the World’s Best MICE City, we have been Asia Pacific’s Top Meeting City for an incredible 21 consecutive years. For the first time ever, Singapore also ranked second in the International Congress and Convention Association’s Worldwide City rankings in 2023.
c. We also partnered global world-class IPs to curate innovative experiences. For example, ArtScience Museum hosted The World of Studio Ghibli, and at Resorts World Sentosa, Harry Potter: Visions of Magic. We also lent support to the Louis Vuitton X Murakami Pop-Up in Joo Chiat.
5. Building on these flows, STB has been working with tourism and lifestyle enterprises on new and fresh opportunities. As Mr Neil Parekh highlighted, our vision for the Tourism 2040 (T2040) roadmap will drive the next chapter of our quality tourism journey. STB will share more about T2040 in the coming months.
6. We also have a good flow of events and attractions lined up this year. This year, we expect international visitor arrivals to reach between 17.0 to 18.5 million, bringing in approximately $29.0 to $30.5 billion in tourism receipts. SMS Low as Parliament’s heartland guide, spoke about injecting vibrancy into our heartlands. As Parliament’s tourist guide, let me take you through some of the new and rejuvenated offerings around Singapore.
7. Mr Chairman, our flow of MICE events remains vibrant, reflecting strong business confidence from organisers and delegates. This year, we will host inaugural events like the Business Aviation Asia Forum and Expo. Bloomberg’s New Economy Forum will also return to Singapore in November for the fifth time.
8. Mr Edward Chia asked how we are working with local arts practitioners to create authentic tourism content. In January, Singapore Art Week 2025 aggregated over 160 art events and featured many local artists. And for the third time, ART SG returned to Singapore as part of SAW, with 105 galleries from 30 countries and territories around the world.
9. To Ms Usha Chandradas’ question, signature lifestyle events, including music festivals, increases our appeal to global talent and visitors, and this boosts tourism and economic spillovers. They also provide a stage for our local creatives to showcase their talent, like Kin Leonn and Iman Fandi. STB will continue working with stakeholders, including our National Arts Council (NAC) to create more opportunities for our local music ecosystem.
a. We will continue to support these events, through financial and non-financial means, to build a diverse pipeline. And we welcome compelling music festival proposals that bring strong economic benefits to Singapore.
10. For sports fans, we will host the NBA Rising Stars Invitational in June, which will be the first regional youth basketball event in Asia. This comes after we hosted the Singapore Tennis Open and Singapore Smash just last month.
11. Our Integrated Resorts will also unveil world-class tourism offerings as part of their ambitious expansion plans:
a. When completed in 2029, Marina Bay Sands’ upcoming fourth tower will redefine our iconic skyline.
b. Over at Resorts World Sentosa, I broke ground for its new Waterfront Lifestyle Development in November, which will feature an exciting new promenade with entertainment, retail, and dining experiences. I also opened Illumination’s Minion Land just in time for the March school holidays, and later this year, we will open the Singapore Oceanarium, which will be three times the size of our current SEA Aquarium.
c. In a few years, we will also open Super Nintendo World at Universal Studios Singapore.
12. Let’s now go from the South of Singapore to the North of Singapore in Mandai. Following the opening of Bird Paradise in 2023, new features in Mandai await all of us this year.
a. I launched the public Mandai Boardwalk in January, which offers breathtaking views of Upper Seletar Reservoir and the Central Catchment Nature Reserve.
b. We are also opening Rainforest Wild ASIA, Singapore’s fifth zoological park. It will be home to 29 iconic animal species. I visited a few weeks ago for a preview, and Minister Grace Fu will officially open it next Wednesday. Then there’s also Mandai Rainforest Resort by Banyan Tree, which opens next month. It blends architecture with nature, offering rooms, including tree houses nestled in lush greenery.
c. And next year, we look forward to opening Rainforest Wild Africa.
13. Mr Chairman, this flow of new offerings marks our 60th year of independence. And our tourism sector has come a long way since. I spend plenty of time with our tourism sector – our workers and our visitors. The amazing tourism offerings we enjoy today is testament to their work over the past sixty years.
14. That’s why I am happy to announce that our attractions are rolling out several deals in celebration of SG60. We are working with Association of Singapore Attractions (ASA) and our tourism businesses to curate SG60 promotions, including family-friendly bundles and discounts.
a. For instance, Gardens by the Bay will launch an exclusive SG60 Wonder Blooms Pass for citizens and residents to enjoy over 60% discounts on unlimited visits to six stunning upcoming floral displays in our Flower Dome. Mandai Wildlife Reserve will also offer exclusive deals across its parks from May to August. We will launch these deals on our SG60 website today, so please book and visit our attractions and enjoy these amazing offers.
15. Let’s also go on a cruise! Like on Disney Adventure cruise ship in Singapore which is starting in December. It is the first-ever Disney Cruise Line ship to homeport in Asia. Many new cruise ships will also be calling in Singapore, including Resorts World Cruises’ Star Voyager and The Ritz-Carlton Yacht Collection’s Luminara.
16. As cruise lead coordinator for ASEAN, we are working with our neighbours on new sailing itineraries, tapping the fast-growing potential of cruise tourism to attract even more visitors to visit Southeast Asia from Singapore. I discussed this with tourism ministers in Johor in January.
Deepening connections with key partners
17. Mr Chairman, I shared how we are connecting the world to Singapore through our robust flow of tourism and attractions offerings. Equally important is to connect Singapore to the world.
18. That’s why we are deepening our relationships with our trade partners globally. Ms Tin Pei Ling asked how we are strengthening our trade links. Our approach is simple: we are working with our trade partners to harness complementary strengths, improve market access and drive mutual growth. This will unlock more opportunities for businesses, talent, and capital to flow efficiently across economies.
a. First, let me speak about ASEAN. We are doubling down on regional economic integration with our ASEAN partners to create an ecosystem where trade, investments, resources and innovation flow seamlessly, making our region jointly more competitive.
i. DPM Gan shared about our progress on the ASEAN Digital Economy Framework and the ASEAN Trade in Goods Agreement (ATIGA) to enhance regional trade networks.
ii. Beyond these, we also substantially concluded the second upgrade of the ASEAN-China Free Trade Area last year, and aim to fully conclude the upgrade this year.
b. Second, we are strengthening bilateral economic ties with key partners such as the US, China, India, Vietnam, and Malaysia.
i. We commemorated the 20th Anniversary of the US-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (USSFTA) last year – a cornerstone agreement which remains one of our most actively used FTAs. We have built on this foundation in new areas such as the digital economy, AI, supply chain resilience, and energy, as Minister Tan See Leng mentioned.
ii. With China, our China-Singapore Free Trade Agreement (CSFTA) Further Upgrade Protocol entered into force on 31 Dec 2024. It introduces more liberal and transparent trade rules, so Singapore investors and suppliers can enjoy better market access to China and greater confidence when doing business there.
iii. In India, annual bilateral trade has grown over 2.5 times since 2005, from $20 billion to $52.3 billion in 2023. During Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s official visit in September, Singapore and India agreed to elevate our relationship to a Comprehensive Strategic Partnership. In January, President Tharman Shanmugaratnam’s State Visit to India commemorated 60 years of diplomatic ties. During the visit, Singapore companies signed MOUs with the Odisha government – including one signed between Surbana Jurong Group and Odisha on sustainable urban planning.
iv. On Vietnam, today, Singapore is among Vietnam’s top investors, and we are unlocking new investment opportunities for our businesses there. These span renewable energy and carbon credits. They will form an integral part of our Comprehensive Strategic Partnership upgrade with Vietnam. Enterprise Singapore and Vietnam’s Foreign Investment Agency have also established the Singapore Unit, which is a single point of contact to provide support for Singapore companies investing in Vietnam.
v. On Malaysia, Ms Usha Chandradas asked about our arts plans for the Johor-Singapore SEZ. We will discuss with Malaysia how the arts sector can complement our priority areas in the Special Economic Zone.
19. We are also ensuring that our businesses can make full use and the most of our FTAs, to gain easier access to global markets, and benefit from greater efficiency and lower business costs when trading with our FTA partners.
a. We worked with the Singapore Business Federation to conduct 11 FTA outreach events last year, attended by over 911 companies. I attended some of these together with Mr Mark Lee. These sessions allow us to provide customised advisory support for Singapore companies to use FTAs for exports and internationalisation. For instance, SGProtein Pte Ltd, a plant-based protein food manufacturer, enhanced its competitiveness in the Korean market with 8% saved in tariffs by using the ASEAN-Korea FTA (AKFTA) and Korea-Singapore FTA (KSFTA).
Diversifying economic relationships
20. Sir, even as we deepen our relationship with key partners, we must also broaden our horizons. Ms Tin Pei Ling and Mr Saktiandi Supaat asked how we are diversifying our trade. Today, we have 27 FTAs and 43 Bilateral Investment Treaties (BIT). These are all in force across the globe, and we are doing more.
21. First, we are securing partnerships with regions further away from us, to help us stay resilient amid global uncertainties and shifting tides. And that is to enable our businesses to improve supply chain resilience and unlock new market opportunities.
a. Sir, I’ve visited Latin America with my colleagues many times to work on two trade deals.
i. In 2022, we signed the Pacific Alliance-Singapore FTA (PASFTA). The Pacific Alliance, which comprises Chile, Colombia, Mexico and Peru, collectively forms the 8th largest economy in the world. I am pleased to share that the FTA is very close to coming into effect.
ii. We also recently signed the MERCOSUR-Singapore FTA – with Argentina, Brazil, Paraguay and Uruguay, and we are in the process of working very hard to get it ratified as well. As the first FTA between MERCOSUR and a Southeast Asian country, this FTA will pave the way for greater economic cooperation between both our regions.
b. We are also doing exciting work in the Middle East. In 2023, we established our first Strategic Partnership with a Middle East country – Saudi Arabia.
i. At the 4th Saudi Arabia – Singapore Joint Committee meeting last month, we discussed collaboration in connectivity, energy, digital economy, and innovation. We also announced new collaborations in logistics and port automation, and started negotiations to update our existing Bilateral Investment Treaty, which entered into force in 2007.
c. Mr Chairman, we are also strengthening ties with Africa, a vast, young and rapidly growing region with vast potential. I’ve visited Africa many times too. In fact, I was just in Rwanda last week to advance discussions on Article 6 carbon credits cooperation, digital and AI, and FinTech. I’ve also met many Singapore-based companies who are venturing into Africa, including GenZero, an investment firm exploring carbon credit projects in Ghana, Kenya and South Africa. This year, we will host the Africa Singapore Business Forum, a biennial platform that has connected over 5,000 business leaders from Africa and Asia since 2010.
22. We will also continue to broaden our trade partnerships in the digital and green economies.
a. We are expanding our networks of Digital Economy Agreements (DEAs).
i. DEAs help us integrate into the global digital economy and enhance digital trade flows. Through DEAs, we work with other countries to establish rules and standards around issues like personal data and online consumer protection. They enable our businesses to capitalise on cross-border digital services.
ii. We have four DEAs in force, and are expanding our network.
iii. Last year, we concluded the European Union-Singapore Digital Trade Agreement (EUSDTA), and are negotiating a DEA with the European Free Trade Association (EFTA).
iv. Sir, recent global developments have underscored the importance of plurilateral initiatives to address emerging issues like digital trade. As a founding member of the Digital Economy Partnership Agreement (DEPA) alongside Chile and New Zealand, we continue to champion DEPA’s expansion. And many countries are keen to join DEPA. Last year, Republic of Korea joined DEPA, and Costa Rica’s accession is nearly finalised. Accession negotiations with Canada, China and Peru are also ongoing. Other economies such as the UAE, El Salvador and Ukraine have also applied to join.
v. On the multilateral front, Singapore co-convenes the WTO Joint Statement Initiative on E-Commerce with Australia and Japan. This helps establish global rules on digital trade. And after five years of negotiations, we reached an agreement on the text last year, supported by around 70 members. We are working to incorporate the agreement into the WTO and expand its membership.
b. We are also advancing our Green Economy Agreements (GEAs), to catalyse collaborations in green innovation and trade flows in sustainable products, and ultimately accelerate our low-carbon transition.
i. Under our GEA with Australia, we established a co-innovation programme for SMEs called the Go Green Co-Innovation Programme (GGCIP) to incentivise partnerships between Australian and Singapore enterprises. The programme has supported five projects, including the joint venture between Singapore-based ESGpedia, and Australia’s FootprintLab, to develop an AI-powered sustainability reporting tool to help businesses with climate disclosure and sustainable supply chain management.
ii. In November, we also launched a joint working group on trade and the green economy with New Zealand and Chile, with plans to enhance cross-border trade and investment in green growth areas.
Conclusion
23. Mr Chairman, our iconic Singapore River is a symbol of our nation’s success story – a dynamic hub that facilitates the seamless flow of people, trade, and capital through our shores, and as a gateway for the world. Our success as a nation depends on us continuing to be open and connected.
24. To stay competitive, we must sharpen our edge by fostering innovation, building strong enterprises, and investing in our people. Government will support our businesses as they navigate the ever-changing currents of the global economy. By building on our strong foundation, we will enhance connectivity, expand opportunities and strengthen Singapore’s role as a gateway for people, trade and capital flow.
25. Together, we will grow our economy, unlock new potential, transform enterprises, and connect Singapore to the world, ensuring our collective success as we chart a bold course forward.
26. Thank you.