Labour woes, rising costs dethroned as local businesses’ biggest fears

Over half of firms are worried about just one thing.

Singapore’s much-discussed labour shortage and rising business costs are no longer the largest cause for concern among business in the city-state, according to the latest Business Optimism Index by the Singapore Commercial Credit Bureau.

Over half or 56% of local firms claim that global economic uncertainties are the main challenges for their growth in 2016, a sharp increase compared to just 22% of firms who said so in 2015.

Although rising business costs and foreign labour issues continue to plague local firms, the proportion of those which have indicated these to be main challenges have fallen from 2015.

Foreign labour issues fell from 14% in 2015 to 5% in 2016 while higher business costs plunged from 48% in 2015 to 21% in 2016.

Only 2% of firms have identified lack of financing as the main challenge in 2016.