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‘Premature to determine Zika’s impact on tourism, economy’: Sim Ann

SINGAPORE — It is premature to determine the impact of the Zika outbreak on Singapore’s tourism industry and the broader economy, said Ms Sim Ann, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth & Ministry of Trade and Industry, in Parliament on Tuesday (Sept 13).

Visitors at the Merlion Park. TODAY file photo

Visitors at the Merlion Park. TODAY file photo

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SINGAPORE — It is premature to determine the impact of the Zika outbreak on Singapore’s tourism industry and the broader economy, said Ms Sim Ann, Senior Minister of State, Ministry of Culture, Community and Youth & Ministry of Trade and Industry, in Parliament on Tuesday (Sept 13).

Zika’s impact on visitor arrivals is currently contained, and Singapore remains a safe travel destination, Ms Sim said, adding that there is no travel restriction by the World Health Organization (WHO) to Zika-affected areas. 

Ms Sim was responding to questions raised by Nominated Members of Parliament Assoc Prof Randolph Tan and Mr Thomas Chua on the impact of Zika outbreak on the Republic. 

Assoc Prof Tan had asked about the strategies that the Ministry of Trade and Industry was pursuing to limit the impact of the Zika outbreak on the tourism industry and the broader economy. Mr Chua had asked if the Government would introduce measures to help affected businesses if the Zika outbreak were to start take a heavy toll on the economy, similar to what was seen during SARS in 2003. 
Singapore reported its first case of locally transmitted Zika Virus infection on August 27. As of 6pm Tuesday, the total number of locally transmitted Zika cases stood at 333.

According to the latest data provided by the Singapore Tourism Board, visitor arrivals in Singapore during the January to July period this year was 9.79 million, up 11.5 per cent against the same period last year.

To combat any potential impact on the tourism market, STB is working closely with in-market travel trade and tourism partners to address concerns from potential visitors, Ms Sim said, highlighting STB’s frontline operations, such as the Call Centre and Singapore Visitor Centre, which are monitoring daily visitor feedback and responding to queries on the Zika outbreak. 

As for businesses, Ms Sim said that while it is too early to consider Zika-specific support measures, companies can tap on existing schemes if needed.

SMEs facing short-term cashflow issues may apply for the Working Capital Loan programme administered by SPRING Singapore, which provides loans of up to S$300,000, Ms Sim said. SPRING is also working with the Singapore Business Federation to help companies develop business continuity plans under the ongoing Business Continuity Management programme “to ensure resilience in the event that operations are affected”, she added.  

“MTI and its agencies will continue to closely monitor developments through the Ministry of Health and National Environment Agency, and are prepared to develop and activate further support for businesses should these prove necessary,” Ms Sim said.

Some analysts have said that the Zika outbreak and rapid local transmission could have near-term anticipated effects on visitor arrivals and possibly even domestic consumption this month. 

Meanwhile, the managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Mr Ravi Menon, said last week that there are early indications that the Zika outbreak could have a small impact.

“It’s too early to tell. I would say early indications are that there could be some small impact, but not likely to be significant for the overall economic outcome. But really, it’s still early days,” Mr Menon said at a luncheon organised by the Foreign Correspondents Association (Singapore) last week. 

The Government last month lowered Singapore’s growth forecast for this year to between 1 and 2 per cent, from the previous forecast of 1 to 3 per cent, as uncertainties arising from the United Kingdom’s exit from the European Union, the weaker global growth outlook and a lacklustre domestic performance combine to weigh on the economy.

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