Daily Briefing: Singapore economy still in dire situation; Company fined for illegally importing food from Malaysia

And Science Centre, Snow City to reopen from 17 July.

From Bloomberg:

Singapore’s economic situation remains dire amidst the pandemic, impacted by what could be lasting shifts in global demand and to supply chains, according to the city-state’s central bank.

“Even if subsequent waves of infection are more limited” globally, it’s not clear whether confidence in resuming normal economic activity will be restored, Ravi Menon, managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, said at a briefing.

Gross domestic product plunged an annualized 41.2% in Q2 from the first three months of the year, the biggest quarterly contraction on record. The government expects the economy to shrink 4% to 7% this year, though Menon noted both upside and downside risks to that forecast.

Menon said roughly 12% of Singapore’s economy is at the “epicenter” of the impact from the pandemic. Travel-related sectors including airlines, accommodation, arts and entertainment, and recreation account for about 4% of Singapore’s GDP and have exerted the “largest drag on economic growth,” he added.

Read more here. 

From ChannelNewsAsia:

A company was fined $3,600 for illegally importing fresh vegetables and processed food from Malaysia, according to Singapore Food Agency (SFA)

In November 2019, officers from SFA detected about 151kg of undeclared and under-declared fresh vegetables and about 10kg of under-declared processed food in several consignments.

The items had been imported from Malaysia by LHH Vegetable and all the illegal consignments were seized, SFA said in a media release. SFA said illegally imported food products are of unknown sources and pose a food safety risk.

Those found guilty of illegally importing fresh fruits and vegetables face a fine of up to $10,000, a jail term not exceeding three years, or both.

If found guilty of illegally importing processed food, offenders face a fine of up to $1,000 and in the case of a subsequent conviction, a fine not exceeding $2,000.

Read more here. 

From ChannelNewsAsia:

Science Centre Singapore and its group of attractions, KidsSTOP and Snow City, will reopen in stages from 17 July, according to Science Centre’s announcement.

All three attractions will implement timed entry and controlled admission capacity. This is to limit large gatherings and close contact over a prolonged duration.

The Science Centre and KidsSTOP will open daily during the school holidays from 17 July to 26 July, and the opening hours are from 10am to 5pm.

Tickets will be available for two timed sessions from 10am to 1pm, and 2pm to 5pm each day. Each session can accommodate a maximum of 500 visitors in the Science Centre, and 100 visitors in KidsSTOP.

These two attractions will transition to a three-day week starting on 31 July, operating from Fridays to Sundays until further notice.

Upon arrival, visitors are required to undergo mandatory temperature screening and contact tracing via the SafeEntry system.

Read more here.