Why Singapore’s property slowdown is the envy of the rest of Asia

Singapore is at the sharp end of the energy crisis. Imported natural gas accounts for an estimated 95 per cent of the city state’s electricity generation. According to Nomura, Singapore is the fourth most vulnerable Asian economy to the energy shock emanating from the war in Iran, based on a set of criteria that includes the share of fossil fuels in energy consumption and the proportion of energy imports from the Gulf.

Last month, Singapore’s Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Balakrishnan said the unprecedented disruption to energy flows was, “in a sense, an Asian crisis”. On April 7, the government announced a package of measures worth S$1 billion (US$783.7 million) to help support the economy, including an increase in a cost-of-living payment for eligible Singaporeans and a one-off payment to taxi drivers to help offset the rise in fuel costs.

Yet a cursory glance at the city state’s housing market shows that one of Asia’s best-performing residential real estate sectors continues to show remarkable resilience. Prices for private properties and second-hand flats built by the Housing and Development Board (HDB), Singapore’s public housing authority, rose in annualised terms in the first quarter of this year.