If you are planning on investing in the booming Singaporean economy, it is worth paying attention to the trends and growth areas there. The freeness, openness and pro-business nature of the Singaporean economy mean that there are always new sectors on the rise and keeping abreast of all of them can be tricky. That's why we created this handy guide to the main areas to watch out for in the coming years. Getting in on the ground floor with these industries could be key to maximising your investment in Singapore.
Gambling
Though, traditionally, gambling was against the law in the Singapore, two major casinos have recently popped up on the island – the Marina Bay Sands and the Resorts World Sentosa. Since they opened their doors in 2010, these two hotspots have brought an estimated $30 billion to the local economy and put even more juice into the always booming tourist trade. The job market has been a big winner too, with around 30,000 jobs created either directly or indirectly by the casinos. Singapore Pools is a not-for-profit organisation, set up to counter illegal gambling activities in Singapore by providing a legal and safe environment for those who wish to bet. 70% of Singapore Pools' revenue goes to prize payouts while 27% goes to taxes and surpluses which are channelled to good causes. Operating expense is kept low at 3%. Though there are still careful regulations in place to stop the seedier elements of gambling from spoiling the tranquillity and peacefulness of the island, gaming and gambling is likely to becoming a more and more prominent part of the economy in years to come.
Healthcare
Singapore is the proud home of Asia's best healthcare system, which makes it one of the most reliable and high quality healthcare system's worldwide. The proof of this is in the rapid growth of medical tourism in the last decade, with about 1 million people touching down in Singapore each year specifically to access its hospitals and doctors. The government wishes to keep increasing this number too, so one could do a lot worse than invest in Singaporean medicine.
Education
Like its medical system, Singapore's education system is one of the world's best and, thus, it attracts students from across the world to its institutions every year. The island has a long standing commitment to excellence in this field and standards are impeccably high. As most courses are thought through English, it gives Singapore a very wide catchment for potential students. This, along with the safety and standard of living offered in Singapore, makes it a very appealing prospect for young people looking for the best of the best from their third level schooling.
Media and communications
Over the last five years or so, Singapore has emerged as one of the main media cities in Asia. This is the result of a concerted effort from its government to boost its relationships with foreign media businesses, with new channels and home-grown movie projects. Video games are another hugely important part of Singapore's media sector and are expected to keep growing in the next few years. Global media brands such as Disney, BBC, ESPN and Discovery all have offices in Singapore.