Submitted by Mohit Joshi on Thu, 01/01/09 - 02:44.Singapore - Singapore's open economy cannot avoid being hit by the global economic recession and will face difficult prospects this year, Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong warned in his New Year's message delivered Wednesday night.
he global economic recession, the most serious in 60 years, would be followed not by a quick rebound, but by several more years of slow growth, Lee cautioned. He said he expected the first half of this year to be difficult for Singapore with more companies downsizing, resulting in job losses.
The Singapore government has responded promptly to this economic storm with the key focus on jobs, Lee said, assuring that his government's next major focus would be this year's state budget with emphasis on job protection.
Lee has also cautioned that the budget, to be announced January 22, would not restore the Singapore economy to high growth overnight, but it would have measures to moderate the global economic recession's impact on the people and the economy.
Singapore registered 1.5 per cent economic growth, which was below the widely projected 2.5 per cent growth, Channel News Asia reported Thursday.
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