{"id":115286,"date":"2020-03-31T11:39:20","date_gmt":"2020-03-31T04:39:20","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/property-news\/mas-eases-monetary-policy-amid-covid-19-pandemic\/"},"modified":"2020-03-31T12:12:14","modified_gmt":"2020-03-31T05:12:14","slug":"mas-eases-monetary-policy-amid-covid-19-pandemic","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/property-news\/mas-eases-monetary-policy-amid-covid-19-pandemic\/","title":{"rendered":"MAS eases monetary policy amid Covid-19 pandemic"},"content":{"rendered":"


\nWith the economy battered by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) eased its monetary policy by reducing the Singapore dollar policy band\u2019s slope to a zero rate of appreciation.
\nMAS also lowered the midpoint of the policy band, a move it last took during the global financial crisis in 2009, while keeping the width of the policy band unchanged, reported Today Online.
\nMAS manages monetary policy via exchange rate settings, instead of through interest rates like other central banks do, allowing the Singapore dollar to fall or rise against its main trading partners\u2019 currencies within an undisclosed policy band, also known as the Singapore dollar nominal effective exchange rate (S$NEER).
\nMAS allows the Singdollar to depreciate or appreciate against this basket of currencies, provided it stays within the band, intervening only when needed.
\nThe central bank\u2019s monetary policy decision would mean the Singdollar will appreciate at a slower rate versus other currencies.
\nThe rate of inflation will also slow, even as prices of some imported items may increase due to supply chain disruptions during the Covid-19 outbreak.
\nWith this, MAS lowered its forecast range for core inflation to -1% and for overall inflation to 0%.
\nMAS noted that the S$NEER depreciated to slightly below the policy band\u2019s midpoint level due to a deterioration in macroeconomic conditions as well as expectations of a weaker outlook.
\n\u201cThis policy decision hence affirms the present level of the S$NEER, as well as the width and 0% appreciation slope of the policy band going forward, thus providing stability to the trade-weighted exchange rate,\u201d said the central bank in its monetary policy statement on Monday (30 March).
\nThe biannual policy review is typically held in April and October, but was brought forward to March.
\nThe monetary policy\u2019s easing to a neutral stance comes after the lowering of the policy band\u2019s gradient in October 2019.
\n\u201cThis stable monetary policy stance also reflects the primary role of fiscal policy in mitigating the economic impact of Covid-19,\u201d said MAS.
\nThe fiscal measures announced by Deputy Prime Minister Heng Swee Keat in February in his budget statement as well as the recent Resilience Budget, will \u201chelp to preserve jobs, skills and firms\u2019 know-how and capabilities\u201d.
\n\u201cMAS\u2019 money market operations will at the same time provide sufficient liquidity to the financial system. Monetary policy will complement these efforts and ensure price stability over the medium term,\u201d it added.
\nSingapore\u2019s trade-reliant economy is expected to go on a full-year recession for 2020. In fact, the Trade and Industry Ministry lowered its growth forecast to between -4% and -1%, down from between -0.5% and 1.5%.
\nThis is the ministry\u2019s second downgrade in view of the Covid-19 outbreak\u2019s escalating impact. The virus started in Wuhan, China but has since spread across the globe, with Europe and the United States emerging as the new epicentres of the disease.
\nBased on preliminary data, Singapore\u2019s gross domestic product (GDP) contracted 2.2% in the first quarter.
\n\u201cThe Singapore economy will contract this year. GDP growth will eventually recover following the abrupt downshift in the level of activity, but there is significant uncertainty over the depth and duration of this recession,\u201d said MAS.
\nLooking for a property in Singapore? Visit\u00a0PropertyGuru\u2019s\u00a0Listings,\u00a0Project Reviews\u00a0and\u00a0Guides.
\n
\nSource : proppertyguru.com.sg\/Property Market
\nRead more…MAS eases monetary policy amid Covid-19 pandemic<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With the economy battered by the Covid-19 pandemic, the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) eased...<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"false","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"spay_email":"","footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_is_tweetstorm":false,"jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-115286","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-property-news"],"jetpack_featured_media_url":"","jetpack_publicize_connections":[],"jetpack_sharing_enabled":true,"jetpack_shortlink":"https:\/\/wp.me\/p75ss1-tZs","jetpack-related-posts":[{"id":109047,"url":"https:\/\/www.siamlandbank.com\/propertynews\/property-news\/singapore-economic-growth-to-drop-to-0-9-by-year-end\/","url_meta":{"origin":115286,"position":0},"title":"Singapore economic growth to drop to 0.9% by year-end","date":"July 16, 2019","format":false,"excerpt":"\r Fitch Solutions expects Singapore\u2019s economic growth to fall to 0.9 percent by the end of the year, a reversal from its earlier forecast of 2.2 percent growth, reported Singapore Business Review. 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