Expectations shift from Budget goodies to virus relief measures

IN what's seen as an election year, many would have been expecting some form of goodies from what has been widely billed to be an "Election Budget", thanks in part to surpluses the government has accumulated over its current term.

But the emergence of the Wuhan coronavirus may put a different spin to these expectation, with the focus now on how these resources may be used instead for business support measures.

Trade and Industry Minister Chan Chun Sing alluded to such a support package on Monday, citing examples of measures taken in 2003 during the severe acute respiratory syndrome (Sars) outbreak.