Singapore supports businesses, workers amid US tariff pressures

The Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce (SERT) has announced measures to help Singapore companies adapt to a new US tariff.

At an event updating SERT’s activities, Singaporean Minister for Manpower Tan See Leng announced Singaporean government’s Business Adaptation Grant which will be capped at 100,000 SGD (78,000 USD) per company and will have a co-funding element.

Local small and medium enterprises (SME) will likely be able to receive a higher percentage of co-funding from the government than local non-SMEs.

Small and medium enterprises employ around two-thirds of Singapore workers, he added. The grant is expected to be launched in October.

The grant will cover two categories of businesses and eligible companies will get support for a "time-bound period" of two years.

The first group includes companies that export to or operate in overseas markets and are affected by tariffs, and the second group includes companies with manufacturing operations overseas or locally that need support with reconfiguration costs, including logistics and inventory holding costs.

For the first group, the grant will help them conduct free trade agreements, trade compliance advisory, legal and contractual advisory and supply chain optimisation and market diversification advisory.

The Business Adaptation Grant complements other schemes that help businesses enter new markets, transform, innovate and grow.

For workers, the Singapore Government and the National Trade Union Congress’s Employment and Employability Institute (NTUC-e2i) will expand access to career guidance services to help workers and jobseekers navigate through economic uncertainty. This builds on the newly launched “Career Health SG” movement to help Singaporeans build strong and fulfilling careers. The Government will also provide temporary enhanced financial support for the core human resources (HR) qualification for HR professionals to help employers better manage and support their workforce amid the changing environment.

Since its launch in April 2025, SERT has been actively monitoring and assessing the changing global trade landscape, working with businesses and workers, and preparing for the next steps./.