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Singapore edged past Hong Kong to become the world’s No 3 financial centre, according to a survey released this week by London-based research firm Z/Yen Group.
Singapore ranks behind London and New York, and is two points ahead of Hong Kong on the Global Financial Centres Index. Tokyo came in fifth.
Singapore’s two-point lead is fairly insignificant, according to the report. It came in fourth in the previous survey last September, behind Hong Kong.
The semi-annual survey is based on the responses of 2,520 financial-services professionals.
London remained just ahead of New York to retain the No 1 position. However, the report noted that the two centres “are complementary rather than purely competitive”.
It noted also that a number of respondents commented that the uncertainty surrounding the possible exit of Britain from the European Union, dubbed Brexit, was having a negative impact on London’s competitiveness at present. |– The Straits Times

5 Thais on list of Asia’s power businesswomen

Three Singaporeans are on this year’s list of the 50 most powerful businesswomen in Asia.
Forbes magazine yesterday recognised Straits Trading’s Chew Gek Khim, Temasek Holdings’ Ho Ching and May Ng, chief executive of Pan-United, among female entrepreneurs and executives who are shaking up things across diverse industries.
Chew is the granddaughter of the late banker Tan Chin Tuan and helms mining and smelting company Straits Trading.
Ho has headed Singapore investment firm Temasek Holdings as it diversified into a global investment powerhouse over the past decade.
Ng of family conglomerate Pan-United oversees the largest cement and ready-mixed-concrete company in the region.
China including Hong Kong dominated the list with 14 women, followed by India with eight, Thailand with five and Japan with four. Australia, Indonesia and Vietnam each have three. South Korea and the Philippines each have two. Macau, Taiwan and New Zealand have one each. – The Straits Times

Vietnam to lower tax for vehicles with small engines

Vietnamese lawmakers have decided to reduce tax on vehicles with low engine displacement, while increasing tax on vehicles with displacement of more than 2,500cc.
Engine displacement is the volume swept by all the pistons inside the cylinders.
In a report submitted to National Assembly delegates for approval, the government said high-displacement vehicles used a lot of fuel, their large sizes were not suitable for the country’s traffic infrastructure, and the cost of such vehicles and fuel for them strained people’s financial resources.
These vehicles also produce high amounts of exhaust fumes, which pollute the environment, the report said.
Meanwhile, the reduction in the special consumption tax for low-engine-displacement vehicles will create opportunities for middle-income people to buy their own vehicles, thus boosting the development of the country’s automobile industry, the report said.
The changes are part of the revised Law on Special Consumption Tax approved by a majority of National Assembly delegates on Wednesday. The new rules will go into effect on July 1. The Special Consumption Tax tariff on autos will see lot of changes with the new regulations. – Viet Nam News

Singapore popular with Bruneian family travellers

Singapore remains a popular destination for Bruneian families, according to latest data issued by the Singapore Tourism Board (STB).
According to Adrian Kong, the STB’s area director for the Philippines and Brunei, 73,594 Bruneians travelled to Singapore last year, slightly fewer than the 77,656 travellers in 2014.
But STB data showed the number of Bruneian visitors during school term holidays in 2015 was higher than in the previous year.
Compared with 2014, there had been a 5-per-cent increase in April, a 14.8-per-cent increase in July, a 2.9-per-cent increase in September, a 6.6-per-cent increase in November and a 3.2-per-cent increase in December, corresponding to school-term holiday periods in Brunei.
Kong said for that the past few months, the city-state had opened several parks and centres that primarily cater to families on holiday. These included MOSH! Singapore, an interactive Digital Multi-Media Theme Park, Kidzania Singapore, the Pororo Park and the Keppel Art Centre for Education at the National Gallery Singapore.
“These attractions promise both the first-time and repeat travellers exciting activities that will allow the family to bond together,” he said. – The Brunei Times