Singapore dollar, Monday, December 31 2007, 13:00 EST (2007-12-31 18:00 UTC)Market map visualizes currencies, organized by continents, size-coded by Gross Domestic Product (GDP), and color-coded to show the appreciation or depreciation of exchange rates against the base currency.
USD to SGD (YHO:USDSGD=X) Delayed quote data EditLast Trade: 1.4292 SGDTrade Time: 4:37PM SGTBid: 1.4292Ask: 1.4297
CAN SINGAPORE DOLLARS BE ASEAN STANDARD From: chorut 05:03 To: ALL 1 of 4 173928.1 THE US DOLLAR HAS BEEN FOR DECADES THE STANDARD CURRENCY WHICH GOVERNMENTS PEGGED THEIR RESERVES to for its strength... till recent times.In the last decade the US dollar has weaken so much so has the US economy -the Euros have emerged stronger than ever.Seems like it is difficult to even trust what the US says about their problems and more and more problems crop up unbatedly...bottomless pit it seems......IN THE ASEAN REGION..COULD THE SINGAPORE DOLLAR BECOME THE REGIONAL STANDARD CURRENCY OF RECOGNITION AND FOR RESERVES AND TRADE? IT SEEMS RELIABLE , STRONG AND CONSISTENT IN VALUE ...WHY NOT???
From: sydput 10:42 To: chorut unread 4 of 4 173928.4 in reply to 173928.1 I think Dr M brought this up in 1997 when the ringgit was sold short by forex traders in singapore, i.e. using S$ as the stabilising currency in ASEAN. LKY rejected the proposal (maybe due to tax collected from profits in currency trading is a lucrative for PAP). The result was currency control in malaysia and renewed tiff between twp arch rivals.ASEAN countries such as Indonesia/Malaysia/Thailand needs to peg their currency with singapore as a big proportion of their country's earnings ends up in singapore banks for tax evasion purposes. Hence the rise in value of singapore currency against other asean countries.Palm oil estate owners put their money in singapore banks, not in banks in kalimantan or places where the plantation is situated, as the buying and selling transaction is done in sinapore. Therefore singapore benefits more from plantation owners that the people in kalimantan where they have to clear their jungles etc to accomodate the wishes on the investor.Situation is even worse for indonesia as the chinese businessmen there do not have faith in their economy and stash their loot in singapore, including funds obtained from coal mining/timber/and other mineral deposits. These money is then used to "play"with the rupiah(IDR) making the currency unstable.If singapore is unwiling to be the central banker of asean, Malaysia/Indonesia and thailand must create a currency peg amongst them as their economy are almost similar i.e. textile/elecronics/plantation/timber/tourist/fisheries and their stock market should merge or cross listing be made avalable, while singapore is totally different i.e. banking and financial centre and properties.
http://www.mas.gov.sg/news_room/statements/2008/Monetary_Policy_Statement_10Apr08.htmlINTRODUCTION1. Since April 2004, MAS has maintained the policy of a modest and gradual appreciation of the Singapore dollar nominal effective exchange rate (S$NEER) policy band. In October 2007, the policy was tightened through a slight increase in the slope of the band. The gradual appreciation of the S$ exchange rate over the past few years has helped to mitigate inflationary pressures.Chart 1 - Nominal Effective Exchange Rate (S$NEER)(http://www.mas.gov.sg/resource/news_room/statements/2008/apr08_web.GIF)2. Since the last policy review, the S$NEER has fluctuated in the upper half of the policy band. (Chart 1) This occurred against the general weakness of the US$ and the concomitant strengthening of other currencies including the yen and euro. Amidst the cuts in US interest rates by the Federal Reserve, the domestic three-month interbank interest rate fell from 2.75% as at end-August 2007 to 1.31% at the end of March 2008. OUTLOOK FOR 20083. Notwithstanding the slowdown in the US economy and the turbulence in financial markets, economic activity in Singapore has continued to stay firm. The Advance Estimates released by the Ministry of Trade and Industry today showed that GDP expanded by 7.2% on a year-on-year basis in Q1 2008, bringing average growth to 6.3% in the six months from Oct 2007 to Mar 2008. Growth was broad-based, with the manufacturing, construction, financial services and transport hub services sectors contributing to sustained economic activity. 4. Singapore’s economic growth is likely to ease in the next few quarters. Recent data indicate a significant deterioration in growth prospects of the developed economies, particularly the US, amidst heightened risk aversion and tighter credit conditions. However, economic activity in Asia is expected to remain fairly resilient in the near term, reflecting strong domestic demand and regional trade flows. Asian financial institutions have also not been significantly affected by the subprime crisis in the US. In Singapore, GDP growth is expected to be supported by the continued expansion in a number of industries including marine engineering, construction, tourism, and certain segments of the services sector such as bank intermediation. 5. Our assessment at this point is for Singapore’s GDP growth to ease to 4-6% this year, in line with the economy’s growth potential. However, there are downside risks to growth reflecting the considerable uncertainty on the global economic front. In particular, a more severe global downturn cannot be ruled out if there is a further escalation of the financial crisis in the US. If this occurs, Singapore’s growth will be adversely affected. 6. CPI inflation in Singapore has risen sharply since the second half of last year, reflecting a confluence of external and domestic factors. From 0.8% in the first half of last year, it rose to 3.4% in H2 before accelerating further to 6.6% in Jan-Feb 2008. The escalation in global oil, food and other commodity prices has contributed, directly and indirectly, to the increase in consumer prices. Domestically, business costs have risen on account of higher wages and rentals amidst tighter conditions in the labour and commercial property markets, respectively. The rise in CPI inflation also reflected an adjustment in imputed rents of residential properties.7. Global oil and food prices are likely to remain elevated over the medium term, while domestic cost pressures will persist due to short-term capacity constraints in certain segments of the economy. In the near term, the pass-through of cost increases from both external and domestic sources will continue, albeit at a more moderate pace. Thus, CPI inflation is expected to remain high until the middle of the year, before easing in the second half. For 2008 as a whole, CPI inflation is projected to come in at the upper half of the 4.5-5.5% forecast range.MONETARY POLICY8. The Singapore economy is expected to grow at a more moderate pace this year following several years of robust expansion. At the same time, CPI inflation has increased and is expected to remain elevated in the first half of this year. Even as the downside risks to economic growth have increased, global inflationary pressures remain high. 9. Against this backdrop of continuing external and domestic cost pressures, an upward shift of the policy band at this point will help to moderate inflation going forward, while providing support for sustainable growth in the economy. MAS will therefore re-centre the exchange rate policy band at the prevailing level of the S$NEER. There will be no change to the slope or width of the policy band.
Analysts cite slowdown in growth, low interest rates, falling oil pricesBy Bryan Lee, Economics Correspondent The US dollar is the most widely used currency in international trade and acts as a common benchmark for business worldwirde. -- PHOTO: AGENCE FRANCE-PRESSETHE value of the Singapore dollar yesterday suffered its largest fall against the US dollar in two years, diving 1.2 per cent to $1.40 to the greenback.The plunge propelled the local currency to its biggest weekly drop against the US dollar in four years.QuoteWhy the US$ mattersTHE Singapore dollar may be managed against a basket of currencies of the country's biggest trading partners but its rate of exchange with the greenback is still the most important measure of its value.The US dollar is the most widely used currency in international trade and acts as a common benchmark for both businesses and policymakers worldwide.... moreWhy this near free fall in the Singdollar? Analysts say anxieties over slowing economic growth have now overtaken inflation concerns. When inflation was enemy No. 1, a strong Singdollar was a given.The local currency, along with the euro, yen and other major currencies, are being assailed by growing signs that America's economic slump is spreading worldwide. The greenback, which has already been hurt by US economic woes, ironically stands tall in these bearish times.Two other factors mean the Singdollar is losing ground, analysts say. Firstly, falling energy and commodity prices are seen to erode inflation's threat. Secondly, local interest rates, at a paltry 1 per cent, are prompting investors to move their money to higher-yielding currencies.'With global growth slowing rapidly and oil prices coming off sharply, the local market is shifting its focus to growth from inflation,' said UBS currency strategist Nizam Idris.Currency experts reckon the Singdollar is likely to weaken further in the coming months, though yesterday's nosedive is unlikely to be repeated.But they say the Monetary Authority of Singapore will probably maintain its policy stance, allowing for Singdollar appreciation, at the next review in October.They say the MAS is likely to keep this stand as it is far from clear that the inflation beast has truly been slain. MAS manages the currency against an undisclosed basket of currencies of its top trading partners. It has moved in the last two reviews to allow for a faster appreciation. A stronger Singdollar makes imports cheaper, which helps rein in inflation, but it also makes exports less competitive.Bearish growth comments on Thursday from the European Central Bank, usually concerned only with inflation, and a warning from Tokyo that the world's No. 2 economy may be in a recession, sent the euro down 1.7 per cent and the yen down 1 per cent.Other currencies, including the ringgit, Indonesian rupiah, Philippine peso and Taiwan dollar, also recorded sharp falls in what Mr Nizam has described as an 'ugliness contest' in which currencies are repriced as the weakness of their underlying economies becomes apparent.'People now forget the decoupling theory. The only currency that has already priced in its negative economic environment is the US dollar. For other currencies, adjustments are being made as their economies are now expected to record weaker growth,' he said.Standard Chartered Bank foreign exchange strategist Callum Henderson points out that Asia is especially vulnerable to a global slowdown as it is the region most open to world trade. This may prompt policymakers to ease monetary policy and cut borrowing costs to help sustain economic activity. 'Interest rate expectations have shifted a lot in Asia and Europe towards rate cuts,' he said.In Singapore, analysts say the central bank may be letting the Singdollar slide within the overall band of appreciation as inflation, which has hit 26-year highs, seems to have peaked. A recent fall in oil and commodity prices, inflation's biggest drivers, may be prompting policymakers to shift attention to economic growth. Oil, which recently hit US$147 a barrel, is now trading at around US$120.Experts say the Government appears more bearish over local economic prospects. Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam on Thursday said growth is unlikely to rebound 'any time soon'.'The stronger Singdollar is now a double whammy for exports and growth at a time when external demand is already weak,' said Citigroup economist Kit Wei Zheng. 'Regional tech exports have weakened in recent months but the underperformance of Singapore's exports has been alarming.'Looking ahead, further weakness in the Singdollar is likely, say analysts.But Mr Nizam feels the pace of weakening may not be as rapid until clearer signs that inflation is really abating appear. Oil prices, for instance, can rebound as quickly as they fell. 'Singapore's domestic fundamentals haven't changed drastically and underlying inflation is still firm.'bryanlee@sph.com.sg
Why the US$ mattersTHE Singapore dollar may be managed against a basket of currencies of the country's biggest trading partners but its rate of exchange with the greenback is still the most important measure of its value.The US dollar is the most widely used currency in international trade and acts as a common benchmark for both businesses and policymakers worldwide.... more
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Topic: Singapore Dollar - how is it fairing? (Read 13322 times)
