Singapore will stick to rules-based trade principles, even if unfavourable in short term: DPM Gan

[SINGAPORE] The Republic’s trade practices and decisions are grounded in rules-based principles, and the city-state will uphold these even if doing so is disadvantageous in the short-term, said Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong.

“Singapore always adopts the attitude that our approach and decisions are based on principles,” said Gan, who is also trade and industry minister.

“This is important for us as a hub economy. We have to be a trusted partner… No one will send their goods through Singapore if they do not trust us.”

He was responding to a question on how Singapore assessed the US as a long-term strategic and economic partner during a media interview ahead of a two-day official trip to Germany this week – his first to the country as trade and industry minister.

During the Mar 25 to 28 visit, he will meet parliamentarians, business associations and companies, and deliver a speech at the Ostasiatische Liebesmahl, an annual networking gala for the German-Asia-Pacific business community that takes place in Hamburg.

His remarks come after the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) earlier this month disputed the basis of a US trade investigation that named the city-state among 16 economies probed for alleged unfair trade practices.

The investigations, which typically take months to complete, are required for US President Donald Trump to unilaterally impose duties on imports from specific countries found to have used unfair trading practices.

In its statement, MTI noted that Singapore had, in fact, run a bilateral trade deficit with the US to the tune of around US$27 billion in 2024 – contradicting claims by the US Trade Representative (USTR) of a surplus of the same amount.

MTI said it has provided USTR with the corrected data and will seek clarity on both the trade figures and the scope of the Section 301 investigations.

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The ministry also countered the suggestion that Singapore has continued to expand its manufacturing capacity despite a drop in industrial occupancy rates, noting that its industrial space occupancy has been consistently healthy at around 90 per cent.

Gan said Singapore will continue to uphold its principles, promote a rules-based system and remain predictable, adding that negotiations with the US to secure a better deal for Singapore and Singaporeans were ongoing. He declined to elaborate.

“As (Prime Minister Lawrence Wong) has said, this is a changed world. And in fact, a constantly changing world,” he said.

“We just have to watch, continue our best efforts, and negotiate for a better outcome.”