Economy

10 Nov 2021

Mobius: Singapore Should Open Borders to More Markets

The Index Today

The government of Singapore should focus on nee markets and open borders to gain more business activity according to Mark Mobius, veteran emerging-markets investor. During a Bloomberg television interview with Haslinda Amin, he said, “It’s so much easier to do business here because you’re able to travel, particularly to emerging market countries, whereas with Singapore, they’ve warmed up to Europe but not to emerging market countries.”

During the pandemic, the nation restricted mobility and tightened its policy on hiring foreign workers. According to data received through June, the overall population saw a decline of 4.1% this year. Although the country is gradually opening up its borders, it is being cautious and implementing reopening measures with strict scrutiny.

Singapore is only allowing vaccinated travelers to enter through certain flights and routes, mainly from Europe, the U.S and Australia. Other routes are scheduled to open on November 29, particularly from Malaysia as it aims it become a major financial hub. Despite gradual ease of borders, the country is still stricter in comparison to neighboring nations.

Mobius further said, “Singapore needs to adopt policies similar to those in Dubai where everybody wears masks, everybody gets vaccinated but you allow them to travel and go in and out of the country.”