A CORPORATE income tax rebate to help firms in the short term, alongside a new tax credit to keep the country competitive in attracting investments.

These moves were part of a Budget which tackled immediate challenges, while laying out an ambitious plan to keep the city-state vibrant, prosperous and inclusive.

In his Budget speech on Friday (Feb 16), Finance Minister Lawrence Wong warned that “for some time to come”, Singapore faces an external environment that is “less stable and favourable to our security and prosperity than the preceding three decades”. There is no turning back in this “new era of conflict and confrontation”, with more violence and armed conflict, greater fragmentation and increased unpredictability. That is why the government embarked on the Forward Singapore exercise, said Wong, “to set out a road map for our way forward in this very troubled world”.