Singapore retains position as Asia’s top convention city

Singapore has maintained its stronghold as Asia’s Top Convention City for the 11th consecutive year, according to the latest global rankings released by the International Congress and Convention Association (ICCA).

The Republic is also the only city in Asia to make the Top 10 Convention Cities in the world, alongside the likes of Vienna, Madrid, Paris, Berlin and Barcelona.

Last year, Singapore hosted a record high of 150 ICCA events, up 5.6 per cent from 142 in 2011.

The Singapore Tourism Board added that visitor numbers for last year also hit a record high of 14.4 million visitors, an increase of nine per cent from 2011.

 

Singapore: One Of The Most Livable Cities In Asia

Many foreigners who have lived in Singapore would agree that Singapore is one of the best places in Asia to live, work and play in. The standard of living in Singapore is good because of the efficiency in finding work and doing business. Coupled with the strong economy and political stability in the country, it has brought about a safe living environment with very low crime rates.

 

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Singapore retains crown as best seaport in Asia

SINGAPORE: The Port of Singapore once again clinched the Best Seaport in Asia award at the Asian Freight and Supply Chain Awards (AFSCA), retaining its crown as Asia’s port of choice.

The award was presented to Singapore for an unprecedented 25th time at the 27th AFSCA held Thursday evening in Beijing.

Receiving the award on behalf of the Port of Singapore was Chan Keng Nee, deputy director (Vessel Traffic Management) from Maritime and Port Authority of Singapore (MPA).

The Port of Singapore was recognised for her cost competitiveness, container shipping-friendly fee regime, provision of suitable container shipping-related infrastructure, timely and adequate investment in new infrastructure, and facilitation of ancillary services including logistics and freight forwarding facilities.

Singapore was selected for the award ahead of strong competition from Busan Port, Port of Dalian, Port of Hong Kong, Port Klang, Laem Chabang Port, Port of Manila, Shanghai Yangshan Port, Shenzhen Port and Port of Tanjung Pelepas, among others.

Despite uncertain times facing the global maritime industry, the Port of Singapore achieved record figures in several areas last year.

Container throughput crossed the 30 million twenty-foot equivalent units (TEUs) milestone for the first time and vessel arrival tonnage reached a record high of 2.25 billion gross tonnes last year.

Singapore also remains the world’s top bunkering port, registering bunker sales volumes of 42.7 million tonnes.  — BERNAMA

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Singapore emerging as favourite destination for Indian entrepreneurs, companies & students

A report by Boston Consulting Group released last year put the number of millionaire households in the island nation at 188,000 or around 17% of its resident households. This means Singapore, which has a population of 5.31 million, has the largest percentage of millionaires in the world. Singapore’s uber-rich population has grown, with 10 in every 100,000 households now classified as ultra-high-net-worth or those with more than $100 million in private financial wealth.

Diversity and multiculturalism are among the top reasons for him to have decided in favour of Singapore as his work and home base. An avid basketball fan, he is a shareholder in Singapore Slingers professional basketball team. And in his free time he’s busy with his favourite hobby: promoting turbans through The Turbanizer, a mobile app that he has developed.

For Professionals Too:

For Indian companies, Singapore provides an ideal location for regional or even global headquarters, he feels. “For the financial services sector across investment banking, hedge funds, wealth and asset management, Singapore has a great talent pool with many professionals coming from India,” adds Chadha. To be sure, Singapore has even become an attractive destination for Indian finance professionals from the UK and the US who want to move because of a tight job market there and Singapore having emerged as one of the key banking hubs in the world.

Singapore’s attractive tax regime includes a top personal tax rate of 20% which kicks in only on income exceeding S$320,000 (around Rs 1.4 crore). Up to S$320,000 there are gradual tax rates starting at zero for the first $20,000. Further, there are no estate duty or inheritance taxes and the corporate tax rate of 17% can be concessional in some cases and go down to 5-10%.

With a low average individual taxation rate, which is further lowered for those who make significant investments, the island nation is indeed an ideal choice. Besides, for Indians, the country is hospitable and unlike Dubai — another attractive location for Indians — provides an easier path to permanent residence and later citizenship for those eligible. Tax Cushion For All “Most taxes such as wealth tax, gift tax and capital gains tax are not there and there’s no global income-tax for tax residents of Singapore.

Source: Click Here