Skilled workforce struggles to be more productive: MAS chief

This is despite economic recovery and improvement in manufacturing and financial services.

Bloomberg reports that sustainable economic growth is estimated at 2-4%, Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) managing director Ravi Menon told delegates at the UBS Wealth Insights Conference Monday in Singapore. Manufacturing is resilient and financial services are “doing well,” he said.

However, the challenge on the labour supply side is whether Singapore can raise productivity given that its workforce is already well-educated and skilled, Menon said.

Earlier in a speech, Menon outlined risks to the global economy, using the analogy of the fable ‘Goldilocks and the Three Bears’ to warn of possible risks. While he was optimistic about the outlook, with even a slowdown in China in 2018 not sharp enough to wreck the gains, he said “three grumpy bears” threaten to derail the positive momentum: inflation, trade protectionism and financial instability.

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