Singapore back on the rise.

• Author: Jones, Sarah
• Position: SPECIAL REPORT

Investor confidence in Singapore is on the rise again after its tumultuous SARS affected 2003, Austrade chief economist Tim Harcourt says.

Harcourt said confidence in Singapore also received a boost from the signing of free-trade agreements with Australia, Chile and the US.

"I think it means that the country is desirable to have a free trade agreement with ... and is quite good for Singapore in terms of confidence," he said.

"People do see Singapore as a nice hub for services exports for the rest of Asia, as it is a good place to base yourself.

"Singapore has had a couple of unusual factors in the last year. Probably SARS affected them and Hong Kong more than anyone else and I think when you are an entrepot--a place that focuses a lot on international trade--then anything that affects trade is going to affect you."

Recovering

Harcourt maintains Singapore has performed "reasonably well" and is doing all that it can with the limited resources available.

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