Border reopenings another plus for Singapore's recovery

But economists in MAS survey expect progress to be slow; manufacturing sector forecast to lift Republic's economy

Sharon See

Published Wed, Dec 9, 2020 · 09:50 PM

Singapore

NEWS about promising Covid-19 vaccine candidates is fuelling private-sector economists' optimism about Singapore's economic growth in 2021, with nearly half viewing the reopening of borders as a new upside, according to a quarterly survey by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) released on Wednesday.

This comes even though the forecasts were recorded after Nov 23 - two days after the highly-anticipated Singapore-Hong Kong air travel bubble was deferred as the Chinese city saw a resurgence of infections.

Of the 23 economists and analysts who responde…