MAS warns of disastrous effect of trade conflicts

Concerns may come with the protectionist measures by the US administration.

According to Bloomberg, some of the possible actions -- such as rejecting a U.S.-Pacific trade deal, extra taxes on U.S. importers and labeling major trade partners as currency manipulators -- “may well attract retaliatory measures,” Ravi Menon, managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, said in a speech at a local conference on Monday.

But in all likelihood, the outcome “may not be that bad” since there’s still uncertainty around Trump’s policies and support for free trade remains strong among the U.S. establishment, he said.

Export-reliant Singapore is among the biggest losers from a slump in trade, with the economy probably recording its worst performance last year since the 2009 global financial crisis. Officials have vowed to push ahead with the Trans-Pacific Partnership, a free-trade pact signed between 12 countries including the U.S., Japan and Singapore. Trump pledged on the campaign trail to withdraw from the deal when he takes office.

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