Singapore

• Main Author: Desker, Barry
• Other Authors: P. F. J. Macrory
• Format: Book Chapter
• Language: English
• Published: Springer 2022
• Subjects: Social sciences::Economic theory::International trade; Social sciences::Political science::Public administration::Asia::Singapore; World Trade Organization; Singapore
• Online Access: https://hdl.handle.net/10356/156890
• Institution: Nanyang Technological University

In a statement at the commemoration of the fiftieth anniversary of the GATT during the Second WTO Ministerial Conference in Geneva on May 19, 1998, Goh Chok Tong, Prime Minister of Singapore stated, “The GATT and an open multilateral trading system have enabled nations to compete peacefully without the need to resort to wars in order to carve out trading empires to keep out economic rivals. The WTO must now carry this responsibility. It can do so successfully if it is clear on what it can and should achieve in pursuing its fundamental objective of multilateral trade liberalization”. Singapore has been a strong systemic supporter of the WTO and a consistent advocate of multilateral trade liberalization. Trade is Singapore’s lifeblood. With a tiny domestic market, the world has become Singapore’s hinterland and market. Imports and exports account for three hundred percent of Singapore’s GDP. Since 1979, total trade has grown approximately seven times, reaching a total of S$470 billion (equal to approximately US$272.6 billion) in 2000. For a country so plugged into the global economy, maintaining an open international trading system is fundamental. Singapore therefore places a high priority on the strengthening of multilateral trading institutions.