ST JAN 14, 2020

Both large and small and medium-sized enterprises (SMEs), rank corporate/income tax rate reduction and rebates to help upskill staff as the top two priorities for Budget 2020 based on an annual National Business Survey conducted by the Singapore Business Federation (SBF).

The survey was released on Tuesday (January 14) and was carried out from August 26 to October 25 among 1,000 companies.

The three top challenges for local businesses for this year were identified as :-

• manpower costs (67%),
• business competition (62%) and
• finding new or better ways to grow revenue (56%).

Other key concerns for 2020 include :-

• rising business costs such as for rental and raw materials, rising wages,
  the uncertainties created by the US-China trade tensions and;
• China’s economic slowdown.

Despite the uncertainties, Singapore businesses continue to venture out and expand overseas.

SBF chair Teo Siong Seng said it remains a critical strategy for access to new markets, diversify their supply chains and to support sustainable growth, given the limitations of Singapore’s small domestic market.