Singapore's real income growth eases to 0.4% in 2014 after sharp gains in 2013

REAL incomes grew again in 2014, albeit at a far slower pace than last year's rate, said the Ministry of Manpower (MOM) on Friday.

According to preliminary figures, Singapore's real median income grew by 0.4 per cent in 2014, "following exceptionally high increases" of 4 per cent in 2013.

MOM said income growth was higher than average last year, pulled up partly by the initial effect of the Wage Credit Scheme launched in 2013. This could have encouraged employers to give bigger wage increments, said the ministry.

Weighed down by higher inflation in the recent five years, the 1.9 per cent per annum real median income growth from 2009 to 2014 was lower than the gains of the previous five-year period (2004 to 2009), which stood at 2.5 per cent per annum.

Said MOM: "There was a sustained rise in median income over the recent five years, even though growth varied from one year to another."

As for low-wage workers, income growth at the 20th percentile - after adjusting for inflation - was 2.3 per cent per annum from 2009 to 2014. This was higher than the gains of 0.7 per cent per annum from the previous five-year period.