Economics

Singapore’s Future Is Good, Not Great, Economists Estimate

Buildings stand in the central business district as the sun sets in Singapore, on Sunday, June 4, 2017. 

Photographer: Sanjit Das/Bloomberg
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Good, not great: That’s increasingly the economists’ take on Singapore’s longer-term prospects, from manufacturing to underlying economic growth.

Aging demographics and rising labor costs will weigh on the city-state, which focused on a significant manufacturing sector to support growth, economists said. Singapore stands out against a landscape of emerging Asia cities that are relying more and more on services to juice growth, according to an Oxford Economics Ltd. research note released Wednesday.