SG to see above 5-year average GDP growth in 2022

The 2022 GDP growth will be driven by strong demand for exports.

Singapore’s gross domestic product (GDP) growth will go beyond its five-year average come 2022, an outlook report from Cushman & Wakefield (C&W) showed.

Based on the report titled “Catch ’22 - Asia Pacific Commercial Real Estate Outlook 2022,” Singapore is amongst the five counties in the Asia Pacific that will have above-average growth next year alongside India, Australia, South Korea, and Japan.

Growth in these countries will likely be driven by “strong demand on exports,” the report added.

In terms of the office market, Singapore was also amongst the countries in Asia-Pacific that have the “strongest” rent growth outlook.
 
The strong improvement in Singapore's office market will be buoyed by the resurgent demand in the second half of 2021 that will continue the following year with the return of more employees to offices.

Wong Xian Yang, head of research at C&W Singapore, said Singapore’s Grade A office rents in its Central Business district might even outperform the broad APAC market in 2022, with an expected increase of 4.6% year-on-year.

“Office demand is supported by a thriving tech and finance ecosystem in Singapore, which continues to have a healthy appetite for office space as they expand headcounts,” Mark Lampard, executive director and head of Singapore commercial leasing at Cushman & Wakefield, said.

Despite the threat of the Omicron variant, Lampard said Singapore’s office market will continue its recovery path into 2022.

In terms of investment, C&W predicts that Singapore will record higher volumes next year “supported by firm fundamentals.”