"Singapore Central Bank Maintains Unchanged Monetary Policy Amid Unexpected Inflation Rise"

Singapore's central bank, the Monetary Authority of Singapore, has left its policy unchanged in its first quarterly monetary policy decision of 2024, maintaining its exchange rate policy band and estimating GDP growth between 1% and 3%. The bank expects core inflation to remain elevated in the earlier part of the year due to a recent goods and services tax hike, but to gradually decline by the fourth quarter. Economists are monitoring for clues on when the central bank will begin to loosen its monetary policy, with expectations for a potential easing move in April at the earliest. Singapore will announce its 2024 budget on Feb. 16, with expectations for longer-term priorities such as upskilling the labor force and boosting innovation.