SINGAPORE - Five ministers and three leaders from the labour movement as well as business and employer groups will lead the new Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce, announced by Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on April 8, to help local businesses and workers navigate uncertainties sparked by the sweeping tariffs recently imposed by the United States.
The task force, chaired by Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Trade and Industry Gan Kim Yong, held its first meeting on April 16. Its members include:
- Minister for National Development Desmond Lee, who is also Minister-in-charge of Social Services Integration;
- Minister for Digital Development and Information Josephine Teo, who is also Second Minister for Home Affairs;
- Minister for Manpower Tan See Leng, who is also Second Minister for Trade and Industry; and
- Minister for Transport and Second Minister for Finance Chee Hong Tat.
The other members are:
- Singapore Business Federation (SBF) chairman Lim Ming Yan;
- National Trades Union Congress (NTUC) secretary-general Ng Chee Meng; and
- Singapore National Employers Federation president (SNEF) Tan Hee Teck
The task force will leverage resources of the tripartite partners to deliver on three work streams.
The first work stream is “sense-making and communication”, which will be co-led by Mrs Teo and Mr Lim.
It will facilitate regular three-way communication between the Government, businesses and workers to share updates on developments, explain how schemes and measures can support them, and assess their impact.
The second work stream, “addressing immediate challenges”, is co-led by Mr Ng, Mr Tan Hee Teck and Dr Tan See Leng.
This work stream will build on the work of the first work stream to identify pain points and immediate challenges faced by businesses and workers, and review and enhance the Government’s support measures
It will also leverage tripartite channels to share existing support schemes and facilitate businesses’ and workers’ access to them.
The third work stream, “longer-term strategies and responses”, is co-led by Mr Lee and Mr Chee, with support from task force partners and relevant government agencies.
It will focus on longer-term strategies to help businesses and workers seize new opportunities and build resilience in the evolving economic landscape.
These include strengthening partnerships with like-minded countries and organisations and boosting Singapore’s position as a global hub for air, sea, trade and finance.
It will also help to support businesses in entering new markets and diversifying supply chains, maintaining Singapore’s attractiveness to investors, founders and talent, and accelerating enterprise and workforce transformation through innovation and productivity.
The task force will begin engaging businesses and workers in the coming weeks and will provide regular progress updates.
The task force comes on the back of US President Donald Trump’s sweeping new tariffs on trading partners on April 2.
Singapore, which currently imposes zero tariffs on US imports, is subject to the baseline 10 per cent rate. While the duty on imports from Singapore took effect on April 5, Mr Trump announced a 90-day pause on the tariffs on April 9, excluding the 145 per cent levy on imports from China, sans smartphones and electronics.
Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce to take three-pronged approach to help businesses, workers Singapore’s new task force to address immediate tariff shock, and also plan for the future
Analysts say the global trade disruption caused by Mr Trump’s off-and-on tariff policy is likely to cost Singapore’s export-driven economy far more than the relatively lower 10 per cent tariff on its exports to the US.
The Ministry of Trade and Industry on April 14 downgraded its forecast for full-year 2025 gross domestic product (GDP) growth to a range of zero per cent to 2 per cent, from 1 per cent to 3 per cent previously. Singapore’s GDP grew 4.4 per cent in 2024.
On the same day, the Monetary Authority of Singapore reduced the pace of the local currency’s trade-weighted appreciation in its second such move in 2025 to support economic growth.
More workshops, regular updates to help S’pore firms cope with US tariffs: Josephine Teo Mature workers, fresh grads may face challenges in jobs market in light of US tariffs: Tan See Leng
Enterprise Singapore on April 14 that said local agencies are in discussions with the Trump administration over the 10 per cent tariff imposed by the United States on Singapore.
In a separate statement, the Republic’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs also said that engagement with the US is ongoing.
DPM Gan said: “The tripartite partnership between the Government, employers and the labour movement has been crucial to Singapore’s long-term success.
“As we prepare for a more unstable and fragmented era ahead, we must continue to work together and stay united, so that we can overcome the challenges that lie ahead, and find new opportunities to thrive in the new economic landscape.”
Singapore has the fiscal resources to get through tariff crisis, says Chee Hong TatDPM Gan and US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer discuss US tariffs and their impact on trade
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TariffsUS-China trade warNTUCSingapore economySingapore companiesGan Kim Yong
