\n<\/p>\n
Mr Wong also addressed the issue of the government\u2019s fiscal marksmanship, as questions on the Budget surplus were raised by Mr Giam and other MPs Alex Yam (PAP-Marsiling-Yew Tee), Louis Chua (WP-Sengkang) and Xie Yao Quan (PAP-Jurong Central).<\/p>\n
He had announced in his Budget speech that Singapore\u2019s budget surplus for the 2025 financial year is expected to come in at S$15.1 billion (US$12 billion), more than double the earlier estimate of S$6.8 billion.<\/p>\n
Singapore recorded a surplus of S$6.4 billion in the previous financial year, up from an S$0.8 billion estimate.<\/p>\n
\u201cIt’s perhaps my favourite topic because, as I have shared before, I started work in MOF doing precisely this: fiscal projections,\u201d said Mr Wong.<\/p>\n
He said that Singapore\u2019s forecast deviations are within a reasonable range, comparable to other advanced economies.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur projections are prepared by MOF economists using the best available data at the start of each financial year, including GDP growth assumptions at that time,\u201d said Mr Wong.<\/p>\n
Revenues in recent years have come in above projections, not because the government was overly conservative, but because of the difficulty in doing so amid an ever-evolving global environment, explained Mr Wong.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor a small open economy, like Singapore, growth outcomes can diverge significantly from forecasts as global conditions evolve. Because we are so dependent on the external environment, forecasting Singapore’s GDP growth is like forecasting the world’s GDP growth, which is very, very difficult to do,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Revenues from property transactions or Certificate of Entitlement premiums are inherently difficult to predict, he added.<\/p>\n
\u201cBut I assure everyone in this House and Singaporeans that our approach has been and will be responsible and professional,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
In his speech, Mr Wong also addressed an insinuation that the People\u2019s Action Party government \u201cdeliberately painted a doom and gloom picture for electoral advantage\u201d.<\/p>\n
WP chief Pritam Singh had in his Budget debate speech taken aim at the timing of the last General Election, saying it was called shortly after global trade tensions flared.<\/p>\n
\u201cThe political timing of the General Election was calculated to put the PAP in the most advantageous position, with tariff uncertainty serving as a rallying call for voters to back the tried and tested,” Mr Singh had said.<\/p>\n
Mr Wong said that after the US Liberation Day tariffs, there was widespread uncertainty across the world, and the government had to move quickly.<\/p>\n
\u201cHow many analysts projected 5 per cent growth for Singapore in 2025? I don’t recall any. The reason why things did not turn out as badly as we feared was partly due to factors beyond our control, but also partly because of the decisive steps we took,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Efforts to engage the US to safeguard Singapore\u2019s core interests, deepen links with other countries, and forge new agreements that sustain investor confidence deserve recognition, said Mr Wong.<\/p>\n
\u201cSo let us not belittle these contributions just to score a political point. The fact that we are in a better position today than our projections is something we should all welcome. It’s good news for Singapore and Singaporeans,\u201d said Mr Wong.<\/p>\n
He said that if the government had chosen back then not to raise GST and hoped for revenue upsides, and the economic situation then did not turn out well, \u201cwe would be having a very different debate today\u201d.<\/p>\n
\u201cWe will be scrambling to close fiscal gaps. We will be responding from weakness. But because we made the difficult yet responsible decision, because we chose responsibility over convenience, we are now in a position of strength,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n