Singapore
Singapore was founded as a British trading colony in 1819. It joined the Malaysian Federation in 1963 but separated two years later and became independent. It subsequently became one of the world’s most prosperous countries with strong international trading links (its port is the world’s busiest in terms of tonnage handled) and with per capita GDP equal to that of the leading nations of Western Europe.
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Area: |
660 sq km |
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Population: |
4.2 million (growth rate 1.15 %) |
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People: |
77 % Chinese
14 % Malay
8 % Indian
1 % others |
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Language: |
English, Malay, Mandarin and Tamil |
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Religion: |
51 % Buddhist
15 % Muslim
14 % Christian
4 % Hindu |
Singapore, a highly developed and successful free market economy, enjoys a remarkably open and corruption-free environment, stable prices, and a per capita GDP equal to that of the Big 4 West European countries. The economy depends heavily on exports, particularly in electronics and manufacturing. It was hard hit in 2001-03 by the global recession, by the slump in the technology sector, and by an outbreak of Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome in 2003, which curbed tourism and consumer spending. The government hopes to establish a new growth path that will be less vulnerable to the external business cycle and will continue efforts to establish Singapore as Southeast Asia’s financial and high-tech hub. Fiscal stimulus, low interest rates, a surge in exports, and internal flexibility led to vigorous growth in 2004, with real GDP rising by 8 percent, by far the economy’s best performance since 2000.
www.visitsingapore.com
www.gov.sg