After speaking with US Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick, Singapore’s deputy prime minister announced that the city-state is negotiating incentives for pharmaceutical exports to the US.
The Straits Times reports that Gan Kim Yong, the trade minister and head of the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce, told reporters Sunday that over 10 percent of the city-state’s exports to the US include medicines.
According to Gan, he spoke with Lutnick over the phone on Friday.
“While the US is not prepared to lower its 10 percent baseline tariff, we agreed to explore how we could deepen our economic links positively, and we will continue to discuss the practical way forward,” Gan wrote on his LinkedIn page.
“I welcomed Secretary Lutnick to visit Singapore, and look forward to further developing our trade and investment partnership with the US.”
The affluent nation of Singapore is facing a tumultuous global economy that has been upended by US President Donald Trump’s tariffs. The election is scheduled for May 3.
In order to navigate the rough seas ahead, the ruling party has stated that it is critical that it receive a strong mandate.
