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5-2012

Inward FDI in Singapore and its Policy Context

Locknie HSU
Singapore Management University, [email protected]

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Citation
HSU, Locknie. Inward FDI in Singapore and its Policy Context. (2012). Inward and Outward FDI Country
Profiles. 1-18.
Available at: https://ink.library.smu.edu.sg/sol_research/1113

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 Columbia FDI Profiles
Country profiles of inward and outward foreign direct investment
issued by the Vale Columbia Center on Sustainable International Investment
May 31, 2012
Editor-in-Chief: Karl P. Sauvant
Editor: Padma Mallampally
Managing Editor: Ana-Maria Poveda-Garces

Inward FDI in Singapore and its policy context

by
Locknie Hsu*

Inward foreign direct investment (IFDI) has long been an important feature of the Singapore
economy, and Singapore remains an attractive host to FDI. Apart from a brief decline in
2002, FDI inflows have generally been strong in the decade 2000-2010. They reached a peak
in 2007 at US$ 37 billion, just before the global financial and economic crisis of 2008-2009.
In 2008, inflows declined sharply to US$ 8.6 billion, before rapidly rebounding to reach US$
38 billion in 2010. Singapore has moved from an economy primarily involved in
manufacturing consumer goods in labor-intensive industries in the 1960s, to one producing
high value-added goods and a variety of complex services in the 2000s. Investment policies
have evolved to attract high-value added industries as well as targeted cluster activities,
including those in biomedical sciences, logistics and research and development (R&D). At
the end of 2010, the stock of FDI in Singapore stood at US$ 470 billion. In recent times, the
Netherlands, the United States, Japan, and the United Kingdom have been the top sources of
FDI in Singapore. Environmental policies are increasingly emphasized in the regulation as
well as attraction of business activity, including by foreign MNEs.

Trends and developments

The modern economic history of Singapore begins around the period of the country’s
independence in 1965. The per capita GDP of Singapore at that time was US$ 516; in 2010, it
was US$ 43,867, a remarkable 85-fold increase in only 45 years.1 Total official foreign
reserves of Singapore as at September 2011 stood at US$ 233.6 billion, or US$ 45,070 per
capita.2 Rapid economic growth and strong international trade performance have been

*
Locknie Hsu ([email protected]) is Associate Professor at the School of Law, Singapore Management
University. The author is grateful for research funding received from the Singapore Management University
(SMU) in support of preparing this Profile. The author also wishes to thank the SMU law librarians, Charlotte
Gill and Joseph Kennedy, for their unstinting support, and to the project’s research assistant, Tan Chor Min, for
her diligent and patient assistance. Any errors that remain are the author’s own. Last, the author wishes to thank
Denis Hew Wei Yen, Linda Low and Lye Lin Heng Irene for their helpful comments. The views expressed by
the author of this Profile do not necessarily reflect the opinions of Columbia University, its partners and
supporters. Columbia FDI Profiles (ISSN: 2159-2268) is a peer-reviewed series.
1
Singapore Department of Statistics data, available at:
http://www.singstat.gov.sg/stats/themes/economy/hist/gdp.html.
2
Monetary Authority of Singapore data, available at:
 2

accompanied by a noticeable increase in IFDI flows as well – from US$ 93 million in 1970,
to US$ 39 billion in 2010. The percentage ratio of IFDI flows to GDP was 5% in 1970 and
18% in 2010, while the ratio of IFDI flows to gross domestic capital formation stood at 16%
in 1970 and 30% in 2009.3

Singapore is a founding member of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN). As

ASEAN economic integration was propelled forward since the early 1990s, IFDI flows to the
sub-region have increased, and Singapore has also attracted a significant part of ASEAN’s
inward FDI. In 2010, Singapore accounted for half of ASEAN’s total IFDI flows of US$ 79
billion.4 (The shares were 20% in 1970 and 43% in 1990.)5 The rise in flows to ASEAN as a
whole and to Singapore in particular needs to be appreciated against the backdrop of three
factors. First, concerted efforts by ASEAN members toward greater economic integration and
liberalization within an identified timeframe - including the establishment of an ASEAN Free
Trade Area and an ASEAN Investment Area in the 1990s – contributed to the attractiveness
of the region. Secondly, following the establishment of the WTO in 1995, Singapore and
other ASEAN members have implemented trade liberalization measures and deregulation
initiatives. Thirdly, after the 1985 Plaza Accord, which saw a significant appreciation of the
Japanese yen, FDI to ASEAN rose noticeably as Japanese producers relocated manufacturing
operations to ASEAN countries such as Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand.6

Country-level developments

Singapore’s IFDI stock has been growing steadily over the past decade (annex table 1). The
economy showed resilience in the wake of the 2008-2009 global economic and financial
crisis, with an increase of FDI stock between 2009 and 2010 of nearly 37%, as indicated by
the data in annex table 1. As for inward FDI flows,7 there were two periods of sharp decline
in 2002-2003 and 2008, (annex table 2). However, by 2010, FDI inflows had risen to more
than twice of those a decade earlier, to US$ 38.6 billion, surpassing inflows in 2007, the year
preceding the crisis.

In terms of sectoral distribution, services account for the lion’s share of FDI in Singapore
(annex table 3): approximately 76% of FDI stock in 2009. In 2008, the IFDI stock declined
in several manufacturing industries and in the manufacturing sector as a whole, but with
some industries (such as refined petrol products, rubber, chemicals) holding out (annex table
3). In 2009, however, the FDI stock in manufacturing recovered its upward trend. In
services, IFDI stock rose in all major categories in 2008 and in all except real estate activities
in 2009, with wholesale and retail trade, financial and insurance services, and professional
and technical services all seeing a substantial growth in stocks in 2008 as well as 2009.

http://www.mas.gov.sg/data_room/reserves_statistics/Official_Foreign_Reserves.html. The per capita figure is

obtained by dividing the official reserves figure by the 2011 population figure of 5.183 million (available at:
http://www.singstat.gov.sg/stats/keyind.html).
3
Data are from UNCTAD, available at: www.unctadstat.unctad.org
4
UNCTAD, World Investment Report, 2011: Non-Equity Modes of International Production and Development,
(New York and Geneva: United Nations, 2011), p. 46.
5
Based on data from UNCTAD, available at: www.unctadstat.unctad.org
6
Asian Development Bank, Asian Development Outlook Update 2007, Part II: Export Dynamics in East Asia,
p. 57, available at: http://beta.adb.org/publications/asian-development-outlook-2007-update
7
According to the Singapore Ministry of Trade and Industry website, the 2008 figure is S$ 32 billion or US$
24.8 billion. For the purpose of this Profile, the UNCTAD figure will be referred to. All Singapore dollar figures
used in this Profile have been converted to US dollars using the IMF rate of exchange as at 13 January, 2012,
namely, US$1 to S$1.2882 (source: http://www.imf.org/external/np/fin/data/param_rms_mth.aspx).
 3

However, IFDI stock in the manufacture of wood and wood products turned negative in 2009,
and that in land and air transport services was negative throughout the period 2005-2009. The
diversification of the economy has contributed to IFDI growth in most industries, even during
the global crisis, with inflows in only a few areas showing negative performance in 2008
and/or 2009.8

In terms of geographical distribution of inward FDI stock by source-economy, some

interesting developments and trends can be observed. For instance, FDI stocks held by
investors from China as well as from Hong Kong (China) both almost doubled in 2008 as
compared with the previous year (annex table 4); in 2009, FDI stock from China doubled
again, and that from Hong Kong (China) rose noticeably as well. Inward FDI stock
originating in the Netherlands increased significantly in 2008, and there was a further small
increase in 2009, reinforcing the Netherland’s position as the top home country for FDI stock
in Singapore. The United States and the United Kingdom took second and third positions
respectively in 2008 as well as 2009. It is also noteworthy that the combined FDI stock of
Latin American and Caribbean countries grew in 2008, with their total stock in 2008 nearing
the amount held by Asian countries as a group.

The corporate players

Singapore has long welcomed foreign multinational enterprises (MNEs). According to the
Ministry of Trade and Industry, more than 7,000 foreign MNEs have operations in
Singapore.9 Annex table 5 shows the top 25 foreign affiliates ranked by sales in Singapore in
late 2008. Significantly, energy- and petrochemical-related companies dominate this list.

Prior to the 2008 global crisis, the Singapore authorities had decided in 2005 to authorize the
establishment of two “integrated resorts”. These were to be commercial complexes
integrating retail, leisure and casino businesses, aimed at boosting the tourism sector. The
decision led to investments in two integrated resorts by Las Vegas Sands Corp (United
States) in Marina Bay Sands, and Genting Berhad (Malaysia) through its subsidiary, Genting
Singapore PLC, in Resorts World Sentosa, with estimated investments, respectively, of US$
5.5 billion and US$ 4.7 billion.10 The two resorts opened in 2010.

The six largest merger and acquisition (M&A) transactions by value in 2008-2010 were the
majority/whole acquisitions in Chartered Semiconductor Manufacturing, Parkway Holdings
Ltd, PowerSeraya Ltd (a divestment by Temasek), Labroy Marine Ltd, JTC Corp (Industrial
Properties portfolio), and Sorak Financial Holdings (annex table 6). These transactions (each
with a value of above US$ 1.2 billion) show a continued interest in high-value (and other)
inward investments in Singapore, both during and immediately after the period following the
2008-2009 global financial and economic crisis.
Singapore has been the beneficiary of a large number of greenfield investments by foreign
MNEs over the years, which have contributed enormously to her rapid economic growth. In
2008-2010, a significant number of new projects continued to be announced and
implemented. More than half of the top greenfield projects announced by inward investing

8
On the diversification of the Singapore economy, see Singapore Economic Review Committee Report (2005),
chapter 5, available at: http://app.mti.gov.sg/data/pages/507/doc/ERC_Comm_MainReport_Part1_v2.pdf.
9
Statement in Singapore MTI website, available at: http://app.mti.gov.sg/default.asp?id=605.
10
See news reports at http://www.channelnewsasia.com/stories/singaporelocalnews/view/1052836/1/.html, and
http://www.ft.com/cms/s/0/19a89792-51d2-11df-a2a2-00144feab49a.html.
 4

firms during that period were in manufacturing, and two thirds of them were by MNEs from
developed countries (annex table 7).11
Effects of the recent global crises

As noted, there was a sharp decline (of over 75%) in FDI inflows to Singapore in 2008
(annex table 2),12 the first year of the recent global financial and economic crisis. According
to data from Singapore’s Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI), however, FDI inflows in
2008 declined by a lower amount, - 32%.13 In that year, the Singapore authorities took further
steps to ensure financial stability, well-functioning markets and investor confidence.14

Overall, in the period 2008-2010, a large number of cross-border M&A transactions

continued to contribute to inward FDI flows (see annex table 6 for a list of the top deals).
However, while the end of 2010 saw a further rise in FDI inflows to Singapore,15 inward
M&A transactions were reported to be on the decline in September 2011.16

The devastating earthquake and its aftermath in Japan in 2011, the serious floods in Thailand
in late 2011 (which affected regional production and supply chains), the ongoing Eurozone
debt crisis, and the US economic downturn are factors likely to affect the level of economic
activity in Singapore.17 Nonetheless, gross capital inflows (driven by direct investments and
bank and non-bank private sector flows) are reported to have grown in the second quarter of
2011.18

The policy scene

11
See also announcements regarding new projects announced and implemented by the EDB, at:
http://www.edb.gov.sg/edb/sg/en_uk/index/news/project_announcements.html.
12
See, for a more general discussion, “FDI into Asia declines”, Financial Times, January 16, 2011,
http://www.ft.com/intl/cms/s/0/ca309fd2-21a3-11e0-9e3b-00144feab49a.html#axzz1XiEuHIxM.
13
MTI, Economic Survey of Singapore 2008, p. 75, available at:
http://app.mti.gov.sg/data/article/17604/doc/AES_2008_TradeInv.pdf. MTI also reported a decline in total
investment commitments in 2009 but indicated that they grew again in 2010; see, Economic Survey of Singapore
2009, p. 13, available at: http://app.mti.gov.sg/data/article/21265/doc/Chpt3__AES2009.pdf and p. 13,
Economic Survey of Singapore 2010, available at:
http://app.mti.gov.sg/data/article/24221/doc/Chpt3_AES_2010.pdf. See also the general comment in footnote 7
above comparing this to the 2008 IFDI figure for Singapore from UNCTAD.
14
See statements by the then Managing Director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) on July 16,
2009, available at:
http://www.mas.gov.sg/news_room/statements/2009/Opening_Remarks_by_Managing_Director_Heng_Swee_
Keat_at_MAS_Annual_Report_2008_09_Press_Conference.html. See also the MAS Annual Report 2008/2009,
pp. 25-27, available at:
http://www.mas.gov.sg/about_us/annual_reports/annual20082009/MAS_annual_report_2009.pdf, and MAS
Annual Report 2009/2010, p. 40, available at:
http://www.mas.gov.sg/about_us/annual_reports/annual20092010/pdf/MASAnnual%20Report_2010.pdf.
15
UNCTAD, Global Investment Flows Monitor No. 7, October 18, 2011, p 2, available at:
http://www.unctad.org/en/docs//webdiaeia2011d13_en.pdf.
16
Singapore Business Review website: http://sbr.com.sg/markets-investing/news/outbound-acquisitions-volume-
increased-us124b-ytd.
17
For a summary and update, see remarks from the MTI at the Economic Survey of Singapore 2011, 2nd
Quarter, on 10 August 2011, available at:
http://app.mti.gov.sg/data/article/25602/doc/Key%20Messages%20for%20QES%20Media%20Briefing%20on%
2010%20Aug%20(checked).pdf.
18
Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS), Recent Economic Developments in Singapore, September 1, 2011,
available at: http://www.mas.gov.sg/resource/eco_research/eco_dev_ana/Recent_Economic_Developments.pdf,
at p. 8.
 5

When the United Kingdom relinquished rule in the 1960s, Singapore was left to fend for
itself economically. However, many of the British legal and administrative structures set up
before independence would endure. After a short-lived merger with Malaya, Singapore
declared herself an independent republic in 1965. Policies put in place from those times to
deal with widespread unemployment and unrest laid the foundation for an economic
philosophy that is still clearly embraced today: creating a center for free trade and
investment, and leveraging the island’s strategic geographical location. To increase global
competitiveness along with economic growth, Singapore has gradually moved from being a
location for labor-intensive manufacturing in the 1960s to 1980s, to one that is a hub for high
value-added industries and business services. As Singapore faced increasing competition
from neighbors with lower and other costs, new directions were adopted to offer broader
incentives for investments that leveraged Singapore’s location and world-class infrastructure,
such as those for operational headquarters and research and development projects. The
continual drive to restructure and diversify by carefully identifying new growth areas/engines
has been a characteristic of Singapore’s economic strategy.

Singapore’s liberal investment laws and policies have helped her evolve from a
manufacturing base in consumer and electronic items in the 1960s and 1970s,19 to an
economy that is a hub for sophisticated manufacturing and services. Singapore does not
maintain an FDI approval/screening system, unlike some other countries. Some restrictions
do exist in a limited number of areas. These include holdings in entities covered under the
Newspaper and Printing Presses Act,20 banks, financial holding companies, finance
companies, insurance companies,21 and telecommunications entities.22 In addition,
acquisitions of substantial shareholdings in certain approved holding companies (of
exchanges, clearing houses and corporations that are holding companies of these) are subject
to restrictions.23 More recently, with the establishment of integrated resorts, the Casino
Control Act imposed restrictions on divestment by the main shareholder of the two approved
casinos, as well as requirements for licensees to operate such a casino.24

The Economic Development Board, established in 1961, is the primary agency tasked with
the promotion of investment activity (foreign as well as domestic) in Singapore; it
administers a number of incentive schemes, including fiscal incentives.25 Tax incentives were
19
For a summary, see the Singapore Ministry of Trade and Industry webpage:
http://app.mti.gov.sg/default.asp?id=545.
20
Singapore, Newspaper and Printing Presses Act, Cap. 206.
21
See sections 15, 15A and 15B, Banking Act (Cap. 19), Part II of the Finance Companies Act, Cap. 108),
sections 25-27 of the Insurance Act (Cap. 142). See also Part III of the Trust Companies Act, Cap. 336).
22
See Singapore, Telecommunications Act (Cap. 323), section 32B.
23
Sections 81ZE, 97A and 97B of the Singapore Securities and Futures Act, Cap. 289.
24
Singapore, Casino Control Act, sections 41-56, Cap. 33A.
25
The law establishing the EDB was amended in 2008 to further expand the role of the EDB. The current
functions are set out in the amended section 6 of the Economic Development Board Act (Cap. 85):
“Functions of Board 6. —(1) The functions of the Board are —
(a) to stimulate the growth, expansion and development of the Singapore economy;
(b) pursuant to paragraph (a), to formulate investment promotion policies and plans, and promotional incentives
and strategies;
(c) to promote, facilitate and assist in the development of support industries and services which provide
important parts, components and related services to the manufacturing and services sector;
(d) to encourage foreign and local industries to upgrade their skill and technological levels through
investment in technology, automation, training, research and product development activities;
(e) to support the development of local entrepreneurs and small and medium enterprises and to assist local
enterprises to expand and upgrade their operations;
(f) to provide or support training in skills required for the development of the Singapore economy;
 6

first introduced in the 1960s to attract FDI, through the Economic Expansion Incentives
(Relief from Income Tax) Act.26 These included pioneer status tax concessions, investment
allowance incentive and operational and business headquarters incentives.27 In 2010, the Act
was amended to provide relief for various technical and professional services, to encourage
these activities.28 By the late 1970s to 1980s, it was recognized that it would be necessary to
move toward higher value-added production activities, and further to upgrade the skills of the
labor force.29 The emphasis continued to shift in the late 1980s and 1990s to promote such
activities. In the past decade, the new emphasis was to promote innovation-driven and
knowledge-based growth and investment. One such field of recent interest is that of
pharmaceuticals and biomedical technology.30

A Competition Act was introduced in 2004, establishing a system to promote innovation and
the competitiveness of markets in Singapore, and to control practices adverse to
competition.31 The Act also controls mergers that may substantially lessen competition in
Singapore.32

In the decade beginning in 2000, reforms were initiated aggressively to attract production of
high value-added goods and services and promote innovation.33 A number of clusters were
identified for this purpose, including nanotechnology, photonics, financial, logistics and
tourism services, research and development (R&D), and biomedical sciences. Alongside
these reforms, Singapore laws have undergone reviews from time to time to promote the
economic objectives of Singapore. For example, in 2010, to stimulate M&A activity further,
the Singapore tax legislation was amended to introduce tax incentives, available over a five-

(g) to identify key enterprises and encourage them to establish their international headquarters in Singapore and
undertake a wide range of international service and business activities; and
(h) to exercise or perform any function or duty conferred upon the Board under any other written law.”
The amendment also includes functions that may be assigned to the Board by the Minister of Trade & Industry.
26
Singapore, Economic Expansion Incentives (Relief from Income Tax) Act, Cap. 86. (The Act has existed
from 1967.)
27
To benefit from these, entities should be, or belong to, a group that is well established in its respective
business sector or industry and has attained a critical size in terms of equity, assets, employees, and business
share, see: http://www.edb.gov.sg/etc/medialib/downloads/investors.Par.33627.File.dat/HQ%20Leaflet.pdf.
Substantial headquarters activities include, for instance, strategic business planning and development; general
management and administration, marketing control, planning and brand management; intellectual property
management; corporate training and personnel management; research, development and test bedding of new
concepts; shared services; economic or investment research and analysis; technical support services; sourcing,
procurement and distribution; corporate finance advisory services. For information on current incentives, see the
Singapore Economic Development Board (EDB) website at:
http://www.sedb.com/edb/sg/en_uk/index/why_singapore/Guide_to_Investing_in_Singapore/financial_assistanc
e.html.
28
Act 33/2010, amending section 68 of the Act, op. cit.
29
For a summary of Singapore’s skills development practices, see, UNCTAD, FDI and Skills Development –
Best Practices Case Studies, Canada & Singapore (New York and Geneva: United Nations, 2010), available at:
http://www.unctad.org/en/docs/diaepcb2010d5_en.pdf.
30
See: Hank Lim and Lim Tai Wei, Sustainable Development Impacts of Investment Incentives: A Case Study
of the Pharmaceutical Industry in Singapore, 2010, table 2, available at:
http://www.iisd.org/tkn/pdf/sd_impacts_singapore.pdf. Other “emerging businesses” identified can be found at:
http://www.edb.gov.sg/edb/sg/en_uk/index/industry_sectors/emerging_businesses.html.
31
Singapore, Competition Act, Cap. 50B. (The Act provides for a number of exclusions in its Third and Fourth
Schedules.)
32
Ibid. See sections 54-60 of the Act.
33
In that year, the Manufacturing Sub-Committee under the Economic Review Committee of Singapore’s
Ministry of Industry and Trade recommended that Singapore move to higher value-added manufacturing. Report
available at: http://app.mti.gov.sg/default.asp?id=507.
 7

year window.34 At the same time Singapore worked on maintaining and improving
infrastructure facilities (such as in housing, transport, connectivity, logistics, education) to
make the city attractive to global investors and attract highly skilled personnel and
professionals. In 2009, Singapore announced a “new strategy for the Singapore economy” to
attract investments and promote further economic growth, namely the “host to home” plan,35
which is intended to create an environment that will be home to business, innovation and
talent, so that these three aspects will mutually reinforce each other and encourage business
and investment activity in Singapore. The innovation aspect, in particular, encourages test
bedding and the commercialization of (and therefore investment in) environment-related
technology (such as the development of water treatment technology and products to meet the
expected global water shortage).36

In 2008-2010, the Bankruptcy Act was amended to help businesses cope with the financial
downturn. This amendment provides for a pre-bankruptcy payment scheme. The scheme
came into force in 2010, aimed at implementing “a pre-bankruptcy scheme called the debt
repayment scheme that would give debtors who qualify for the scheme an opportunity to
avoid bankruptcy by repaying their debts, wholly or in part, in accordance with the
scheme.”37

A new law has just been proposed to mandate the improvement of energy efficiency in
energy-intensive industries (such as those dealing with petroleum chemicals, petroleum
refining, and pharmaceuticals), expected to be implemented by 2013.

In 1983, the Trade Development Board (later reconstituted as International Export Singapore
- IE Singapore) was formed to “grow” an external ”wing” of the Singapore economy.
Singapore has also actively negotiated free trade agreements (FTAs) to expand trade and
attract more FDI, with the earliest FTA being that with New Zealand, signed in November
2000. To date, there are 10 bilateral FTAs in force (with Australia, China, Jordan, India,
Japan, Republic of Korea, New Zealand, Panama, Peru, the United States)38 with others
already signed or under negotiation. FTAs listed as being under negotiation are those with
Canada, Mexico, Pakistan, and Ukraine, while those signed are with Costa Rica and the
Cooperation Council for the Arab States of the Gulf Cooperation Council.39 Singapore has

34
See section 37L Income Tax Act (Cap. 134) and section 15A of the Stamp Act (Cap. 312). Among other
conditions, however, the acquiring company must be Singapore-incorporated.
35
See information on this strategy at the EDB website at:
http://www.sedb.com/edb/sg/en_uk/index/why_singapore/host_to_home.html. See also Singapore Investment
News, 2009:
http://www.edb.gov.sg/etc/medialib/downloads/publications.Par.29802.File.tmp/Singapore%20Investment%20
News%20June%202009.pdf. The EDB has also reported a growth in investments in 2010 (Singapore Investment
News, April-June 2010), available at
http://sedb.com/etc/medialib/images/news/publications.Par.32207.File.tmp/Singapore%20Investment%20News
%20April%20-%20June%202011.pdf, page 16.
36
See EDB explanation at:
http://www.sedb.com/edb/sg/en_uk/index/why_singapore/host_to_home/home_for_innovation.html.
37
See Explanatory Statement to the Bankruptcy (Amendment) Bill No. 9/2008, amending the Bankruptcy Act
(Cap. 20). The amending Act was Act 6 of 2009, which came into force on 18 May 2009.
38
For a list of ASEAN FTAs with trade partners and other regional FTAs, see http://www.fta.gov.sg/sg_fta.asp.
39
See Singapore MTI website at: http://www.fta.gov.sg/fta_ongoingneg.asp and
http://www.fta.gov.sg/fta_concluded.asp.
 8

also entered into 40 bilateral investment treaties (BITs),40 and concluded 81 double-taxation
treaties.41

Singapore is a member of the ASEAN, now comprising 10 South-East Asian economies,42

and is thus part of the ASEAN Free Trade Area, which has virtually been established, as
ASEAN members have made significant progress in the lowering of intra-regional tariffs; it
is also party to ASEAN investment treaties. Currently, Singapore is part of the negotiations
for the Trans-Pacific Partnership Agreement (TPP), involving nine Asia-Pacific countries:
Brunei Darussalam, Chile, New Zealand, Singapore, Malaysia, Australia, Peru, United States
of America, Vietnam (the first four being already parties to the Trans-Pacific Strategic
Economic Partnership Agreement.43

Increasingly, sustainable development is emerging as an important policy consideration for

the Singapore economy. In 2002, a National Environment Agency was established, absorbing
into it the functions of predecessor bodies, the Environmental Public Health Division and the
Environmental Policy and Management Division of the Ministry of the Environment, and the
Meteorological Service Department of the Ministry of Transport. Among its functions that
have an impact on investments are the management and regulation of air emissions from
industrial premises, trade premises and vehicles, regulation of import, export, storage and
disposal of toxic waste, monitoring of water quality, and the promotion of energy efficiency.

A key statute is the Environmental Protection and Management Act.44 The Act is
accompanied by a slew of regulations that deal with a wide range of environmental issues,
ranging from noise pollution, energy conservation, hazardous substances, ozone-depleting
substances and trade effluent. The Act also permits the authorities to require companies
setting up factories to undertake impact analysis studies – such as a Quantitative Risk
Assessment Study - to determine the risk of hazardous and toxic chemicals and their
disposal.45 In addition, there are non-legislative initiatives promoting green and sustainable
manufacturing.46

40
UNCTAD, June 2010, available at: http://archive.unctad.org/Templates/Page.asp?intItemID=2344&lang=1
41
For a list of double-taxation agreements signed by her, see:
http://www.iras.gov.sg/irasHome/page.aspx?id=812#comprehensive.
See also: UNCTAD, World Investment Report 2011: Non-equity Forms of International Production and
Development (New York and Geneva: United Nations, 2011), annex table 3, available at:
www.unctad.org/files/UNCTAD-WIR 2011-Full.en.pdf.
42
The ASEAN includes Brunei Darussalam, Indonesia, Malaysia, the Philippines, Thailand and Singapore
(forming the original group of “ASEAN-6”), and Cambodia, Lao PDR, Myanmar and Viet Nam (newer
members).
43
For information on the TPP, see the United States Trade Representative website: http://www.ustr.gov/tpp. For
information on and text of the Trans-Pacific SEP, see the Singapore Ministry of Trade & Industry website:
http://www.fta.gov.sg/fta_tpfta.asp?hl=12.
44
Singapore, Environmental Protection and Management Act, Cap. 94A. The Environmental Pollution Control
Act, its predecessor, was introduced in 1999 and the current Act was introduced in 2007. See also the Code of
Practice on Pollution Control (Third Edition, with amendments as at 2009), available at:
http://app2.nea.gov.sg/codeofpractice.aspx.
45
Ibid. (See section 26, Cap. 94A).
46
See 2010 announcements at:
http://www.edb.gov.sg/edb/sg/en_uk/index/news/articles/gsk_and_edb_commit.html and
http://www.edb.gov.sg/edb/sg/en_uk/index/news/articles/s_13_million_awarded.html. In 2002, the ERC Sub-
Committee on Manufacturing had addressed manufacturing and the environment, encouraging business activity
that would be eco-friendly at low-cost; see:
 9

The Government of Singapore expressly recognizes the need for growth that balances
economic and environmental objectives for long-term sustainability, even in the current
situation of a global economic crisis.47 In 2009, the Inter-Ministerial Committee for
Sustainable Development announced a Blueprint for sustainable development.48 The
Blueprint seeks to improve Singapore’s energy efficiency by 35% by 2030, as compared with
2005 levels, and followed by the 2012 Singapore Green Plan.49 The Plan focuses on a number
of areas, including the development of environmental technology. Government funding for
projects in such technology is available from a US$ 15.5 million fund known as the
Innovation for Environmental Sustainability Fund. The fund provides seed funding to
encourage Singapore-registered companies to undertake projects in environmental protection
and public health for applied research and test bedding or demonstration.50 These include
projects that speed up environmentally sustainable applications and those that provide long-
term solutions to Singapore’s specific environmental problems. Singapore’s authorities
recently proposed a new Energy Conservation Act, which has just undergone a period of
public consultation.51 The proposed law will mandate energy efficiency through energy
management requirements, particularly for large industrial users of energy and those in the
transport industry. Such users include affiliates of MNEs in Singapore.

Conclusions
Despite two recent periods of decline in IFDI in Singapore due to external events, Singapore
has remained a compelling destination for IFDI, with inflows seeing relatively quick recovery
after each period of decline, as in the case of the recovery that occurred in 2009-2010. Apart
from providing world-class infrastructural facilities, policies on diversification, periodic
economic review, and restructuring to respond to the changing external environment,
Singapore pursues long-term, environmentally sustainable growth and a systematic strategy
for attracting of FDI intended to weather past and current economic crises. While the full
effects of the current Euro-zone crisis and economic difficulties in the United States remain
to be seen, such policies provide an important underpinning for recovery and growth. At the
same time, Singapore is forging ahead with sustainable development policies, implementing
the milestone Blueprint for Sustainable Development established in 2009. In line with this

http://www.edb.gov.sg/edb/sg/en_uk/index/news/articles/gsk_and_edb_commit.html. See also generally, Lye

Lin Heng, “A fine city in a garden – environmental law and governance in Singapore”, (2008) Singapore
Journal of Legal Studies, pp. 68-117.
47
See statements of the Singapore Ministry of Environment and Water Resources, available at:
http://app.mewr.gov.sg/web/Contents/ContentsSSS.aspx?ContId=1295.
48
See http://app.mewr.gov.sg/web/Contents/ContentsSSS.aspx?ContId=1034. See in particular chapter 7 of the
Blueprint, which discusses the policy direction in respect of industry energy efficiency and growth
sustainability, and chapter 8 which discusses the promotion of innovation and development of technology in
Singapore for sustainability. See also: http://www.clc.org.sg/index.php?q=singapore%E2%80%99s-sustainable-
development-blueprint-next-20-years.
49
The Plan is available at the website of the Singapore Ministry of the Environment and Water Resources, at:
http://app.mewr.gov.sg/data/ImgCont/1342/sgp2012.pdf.
50
See Singapore National Environment Agency criteria for information on the Fund and access to it:
http://app2.nea.gov.sg/funds_ies.aspx.
51
See Singapore Ministry of Water and Environment Resources information at:
http://app.mewr.gov.sg/data/ImgCont/1386/2.%20Factsheet_Energy%20Conservation%20Act%20%5Bweb%5
D.pdf. See also: http://www.lawgazette.com.sg/2011-10/222.htm. The Energy Efficiency National Partnership, a
voluntary program partnering private businesses and government agencies to improve energy efficiency in
Singapore, was launched in 2010 as a precursor to the proposed legislation. Under this scheme, 49 companies in
energy-intensive industries, including multinational companies in the pharmaceutical, electronics petrol-refining
and petrochemical industries, pledged to improve their energy efficiency – see
http://app2.nea.gov.sg/news_detail_2010.aspx?news_sid=20100429971377908561.
 10

development, proposed legislation requiring energy efficiency improvement through energy

management by companies in energy-intensive industries – including affiliates of MNEs - is
pending and expected to be implemented by 2013.

Additional readings

UNCTAD, World Investment Prospects Survey, 2010- 2012), (New York and Geneva: United
Nations, 2010), available at:
http://www.unctad.org/Templates/StartPage.asp?intItemID=4376&lang=1

ASEAN-OECD Investment Policy Conference, “Post-crisis FDI flows into ASEAN”

presentation by ASEAN Secretariat staff, Jakarta, 2010, available at:
http://www.oecd.org/dataoecd/2/23/46485385.pdf

Useful websites:
Singapore, Economic Development Board: Emerging Businesses
http://www.edb.gov.sg/edb/sg/en_uk/index/industry_sectors/emerging_businesses.html

*****

Copyright © Columbia University in the City of New York. The material in this Profile may be reprinted if
accompanied by the following acknowledgment: Locknie Hsu, “Inward FDI in Singapore and its policy context”
Columbia FDI Profiles (ISSN: 2159-2268), May 31, 2012. Reprinted with permission from the Vale Columbia
Center on Sustainable International Investment (www.vcc.columbia.edu).

A copy should kindly be sent to the Vale Columbia Center at [email protected].

For further information please contact: Vale Columbia Center on Sustainable International Investment, Ana-
María Poveda Garcés, [email protected].

The Vale Columbia Center on Sustainable International Investment (VCC), led by Lisa Sachs, is a joint center
of Columbia Law School and The Earth Institute at Columbia University. It is a leading forum on issues related
to foreign direct investment (FDI), paying special attention to the impact of such investment on sustainable
development. Its objectives are to analyze important topical policy-oriented issues related to FDI and to develop
and disseminate practical approaches and solutions. (www.vcc.columbia.edu)
 11

Statistical annex

Annex table 1. Singapore: inward FDI stock, 2002-2010

(US$ billion)

Economy 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Singapore 132.1 144.8 169.4 194.6 241.6 323.0 326.8 343.6 469.9
Memorandum:
comparator economies
Hong Kong (China) 336.3 381.3 453.1 523.2 742.4 1,177.5 816.2 936.4 1,097.6
Thailand 38.5 48.9 53.2 60.4 77.0 94.1 93.5 109,6 127.3
South Korea 62.7 66.1 87.8 104.9 115.8 122.0 94.7 117.7 127.1
Malaysia 37.5 41.2 43.1 44.5 53.7 75.8 73.6 78.9 101.3
Taiwan 30.1 37.3 38.3 43.2 50.2 48.6 45.5 55.8 64.3

Source: UNCTAD database, available at:

http://unctadstat.unctad.org/ReportFolders/reportFolders.aspx?sRF_ActivePath=P,5,27&sRF_Expanded=,P,5,27
and UNCTAD, World Investment Report 2011 (New York and Geneva: 2011); also available at:
http://www.unctad-docs.org/files/UNCTAD-WIR2011-Full-en.pdf

Annex table 2. Singapore: inward FDI flows, 2000-2010

(US$ billion)

Economy 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010

Singapore 16.5 15.1 6.4 11.9 21.0 15.5 29.4 37.0 8.6 15.3 38.6

Memorandum:
comparator economies
Hong Kong 61.9 23.8 9.7 13.7 34.0 33.6 45.1 54.3 59.6 52.4 68.9
(China)
Malaysia 3.8 0.6 3.2 2.5 4.6 4.1 6.1 8.6 7.2 1.4 9.1

Korea, Rep. of 9.0 4.1 3.4 4.4 9.0 7.1 4.9 2.6 8.4 7.5 6.9

Thailand 3.4 5.1 3.4 5.2 5.9 8.1 9.5 11.4 8.4 5.0 5.8

Taiwan Province 4.9 4.1 1.4 0.5 1.9 1.6 7.4 7.8 5.4 2.8 2.5
of China a

Source: UNCTAD database, available at:

http://unctadstat.unctad.org/ReportFolders/reportFolders.aspx?sRF_ActivePath=P,5,27&sRF_Expanded=,P,5,27
a
Terminology of publisher
 12

Annex table 3. Singapore: sectoral distribution of FDI stock, 2005-2009

(US$ billion)

Sector/industry 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009

All sectors/industries 251.4 287.6 361.3 0.4 428.7
Primary n.a n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Secondary n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a.
Manufacturing 80.5 83.6 90.4 81.1 93.7
Food, beverages and tobacco 0.5 1.0 1.3 1.1 1.4
Textiles, wearing apparel and leather 0.1 0.1 0.0 0.0 0.0
Wood and wood products 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Paper and paper products, printing and
publishing 0.6 0.5 0.5 0.5 0.5
Refined petroleum products 10.8 11.1 11.0 11.3 15.4
Chemicals and chemical products 5.8 5.2 5.3 5.5 6.0
Pharmaceutical products 30.0 29.8 37.2 24.0 29.0
Rubber and plastic products 0.7 0.9 0.8 1.0 1.3
Basic metals 0.0 0.3 0.5 0.4 0.4
Fabricated metal products 1.1 1.1 1.4 1.5 1.5
Machinery and equipment 2.8 3.3 4.0 4.7 4.5
Electrical machinery and apparatus 1.2 1.0 1.0 0.9 1.0
Electronic products and components 23.1 25.0 22.0 23.4 26.6
Transport equipment 2.0 2.4 2.6 2.9 3.0
Instrumentation, photographic and optical
goods 1.1 1.3 2.1 1.9 2.0
Others 0.6 0.6 0.6 2.0 1.0
Construction 0.7 0.6 1.2 1.5 1.7
Services
Wholesale and retail trade 42.3 48.8 59.5 71.8 73.9
Wholesale trade 41.5 47.3 57.9 70.3 72.3
Retail trade 0.9 1.5 1.6 1.5 1.6
Accommodation and food service activities 1.6 2.2 2.3 2.6 2.8
Transport and storage 13.7 18.0 23.7 28.2 28.4
Water transport 12.3 16.0 21.4 25.5 25.7
Land and air transport -0.1 -0.1 -0.2 -0.2 -0.3
Warehousing, post and courier services 1.4 2.1 2.5 2.9 3.0
Information and communications 2.9 2.8 3.8 4.0 4.1
Financial and insurance services 94.4 114.0 151.2 162.3 179.2
Financial services 90.0 108.6 145.4 156.5 173.3
Banks 7.6 7.7 8.8 10.1 11.0
Investment holding companies 74.1 92.3 125.3 130.0 147.8
Other financial services 8.4 8.6 11.3 16.4 14.5
Insurance services 4.4 5.4 5.8 5.9 5.9
Real estate activities 5.2 6.4 10.0 11.4 11.3
Professional, scientific and technical,
administrative and support services 9.7 10.4 17.5 27.6 27.9
Others 0.3 0.8 1.7 4.3 5.8
Source: Department of Statistics, Singapore, Foreign Equity Investment in Singapore, 2009, Key Indicators
table (Singapore, May 2011), available at: http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/business/fei2009.pdf.
All Singapore dollar figures used above have been converted to US dollars using the IMF rate of exchange as at
13 January, 2012, namely, US$ 1 to S$ 1.2882, available at:
http://www.imf.org/external/np/fin/data/param_rms_mth.aspx).
 13

Annex table 4. Singapore: geographical distribution of FDI stock, 2000-2010

(US$ billion)

Region/economy 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010
Developed economies
Europe 55.4 65.6 71.6 80.7 93.6 108.7 135.1 153.7 158.3 167.1 181.0
European Union
France 3.7 3.4 3.7 4.0 4.9 5.4 6.3 8.5 7.4 6.2 7.3
Germany 3.3 4.9 5.7 4.8 5.7 6.4 5.9 7.2 8.7 8.6 9.7
Ireland 1.0 1.2 1.1 1.3 2.0 3.0 1.5 2.8 2.6 2.8 3.8
Netherlands 21.9 26.9 19.1 20.9 24.5 25.0 37.8 39.9 47.4 47.8 50.9
Norway 2.7 3.0 2.2 3.6 4.8 6.7 11.8 13.3 16.5 17.2 17.8
Switzerland 12.5 12.1 11.7 13.1 12.8 17.3 21.1 21.3 18.3 17.9 18.2
United 6.8 10.6 24.5 29.6 34.1 38.5 42.9 48.5 38.9 37.8 39.0
Kingdom
North America
Canada 2.4 2.5 2.2 2.0 2.2 2.0 2.1 2.4 2.4 2.4 3.0
United States 24.3 28.6 26.8 28.9 31.8 31.5 29.8 40.0 41.1 44.3 52.2
Other developed economies
Australia 2.5 2.0 1.9 1.6 2.1 2.2 2.6 3.6 3.6 4.4 5.9
New Zealand 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.1 0.1 1.2 1.3 1.3 1.5 1.9 1.8
Japan 22.6 23.2 25.7 26.4 29.1 34.8 34.9 36.9 38.9 39.0 40.9
Korea, 0.2 0.0 0.9 1.3 0.7 1.0 0.6 2.4 2.5 2.0 3.2
(Republic of)
Developing economies
Latin America and the Caribbean
Asia and Oceania
Brunei 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2 0.2
Darussalam
China 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.7 0.3 0.7 1.3 1.8 3.4 7.3 9.1
Hong Kong, 4.8 4.3 3.7 3.0 2.5 3.7 4.9 5.0 8.9 12.0 14.1
China
India 0.2 0.3 0.3 0.3 0.4 1.0 2.0 10.1 13.1 16.1 18.7
Indonesia 1.3 1.3 1.4 1.3 0.9 0.5 0.8 1.3 1.7 2.8 0.8
Israel 0.0 0.0 0.0 1.8 3.6 3.9 3.6 4.0 3.9 3.9 3.7
Lao People's n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. n.a. 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Democratic
Republic
Malaysia 4.2 4.6 4.1 3.5 3.9 6.3 6.5 8.8 9.8 12.0 11.8
Myanmar 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.1 0.1 0.1 0.0
Philippines 0.5 0.5 0.4 0.4 0.6 0.6 0.7 0.7 0.2 0.1 1.0
Taiwan 2.6 3.7 3.9 4.6 4.5 5.6 5.9 6.0 5.1 4.8 4.5
Province of
China a
Thailand 0.5 0.5 0.6 0.8 0.8 1.0 1.2 1.2 1.4 1.6 2.4
Vietnam 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0 0.0
Unspecified 1.9 2.5 3.0 3.5 4.4 6.2 5.4 8.6 11.9 11.1 15.4
destination

Source: Department of Statistics, Singapore, Foreign Equity Investment in Singapore 2009 (Singapore, May
2011); available at: http://www.singstat.gov.sg/pubn/business/fei2009.pdf, table 2: Foreign Direct Investment in
Singapore By Country/Region 2000-2009 (Stock at Year- End); and FDI in Singapore By Country/Region,
2006-2010 (Singapore, 30 December 2011); available at:
http://www.singstat.gov.sg/stats/themes/economy/biz/foreigninvestment.pdf
a
According to the terminology used by publisher.
 14

Annex table 5. Singapore: top foreign affiliates in the economy, ranked by sales, 2008a

(US$ billion)
Rank Company name Industry Parent company Home Sales Assets
economy
1 BP Singapore Pte Limited Production and marketing of natural BP plc United 47.7 5.7
energy resources Kingdom
2 Exxonmobil Asia Pacific Manufacturer and supplier of energy Exxon Mobil United 39.8 9.9
Pte Ltd products, oil and gas exploration, Corporation States
chemicals, suppliers of lubricants and
technology products
3 Vitol Asia Pte Ltd Trading in crude oil, petroleum and Vitol Holding BV Netherlands 34.6 2.6
petroleum related products and coal
4 SK Energy International Trade in crude oil, refined products, SK Innovation Co Korea, 25.6 0.9
Pte Ltd bunkers, lubes, coal, petrochemicals Ltd Republic of
5 GS Caltex Singapore Pte Chemicals GS Caltex Korea, 19.0 0.9
Ltd Corporation Republic of
6 Shell Eastern Petroleum Petroleum and petroleum products Shell Chemicals United 18.2 7.6
(Pte) Ltd Ltd. Kingdom
7 Trafigura Pte LTD Oil and oil product commodity Trafigura Beheer Netherlands 17.4 2.8
trading BV
8 Hewlett-Packard Technology Hewlett-Packard Singapore 17.0 5.3
International Pte Ltd Singapore (Private)
Limited
9 Jardine Cycle & Carriage Motor vehicles and motorcycles, Jardine Matheson Hong Kong 15.7 14.5
Limited financial services, Holdings Limited (China)
agribusiness, heavy equipment and
mining, information
technology, infrastructure and
logistics.

10 Glencore Singapore Pte Commodities Glencore Switzerland 15.5 1.8

Ltd International Plc
11 Hewlett-Packard Design, manufacture and supply of Hewlett-Packard United 14.0 8.0
Singapore (Private) computers and related equipment Company States
Limited
12 Sinochem International Dealers and brokers of crude oil, Sinochem China 13.9 0.6
Oil (Singapore) Pte LTD petroleum products and derivatives Corporation
13 Toyota Motor Asia Vehicles and parts Toyota Motor Japan 12.8 1.1
Pacific Pte Ltd Corporation
14 Seagate Singapore Storage devices for computers Seagate Technology United 12.5 4.7
International LLC States
Headquarters Pte Ltd
15 Unipec Singapore Pte Ltd Trading of crude oil and petroleum China International China 11.7 0.5
products United Petroleum &
Chemicals Co Ltd
16 Petrochina International Investment holding and carry on the PetroChina China 10.6 1.4
(Singapore) Pte Ltd business as trading centre for oil International Co Ltd
trading and general trading
17 Itochu Petroleum Co, Trading in crude oil, petroleum and Itochu Corporation Japan 10.4 0.6
(Singapore) Pte Ltd related by-products
18 Energy products Chevron United 10.0 n.a.
Chevron Texaco Corporation States
19 Jardine Matheson (S) Ltd Holding company for securities etc Jardine Matheson Hong Kong 9.5 n.a.
Holdings Limited (China)
20 Hewlett-Packard Asia Hewlett-Packard United 8.9 1.5
Pacific Pte Ltd Company States
21 Toshiba Capital (Asia) Finance Toshiba Corporation Japan 8.4 n.a.
 15

Ltd
22 Singapore Petroleum Petrochina Singapore 7.9 2.2
Company Limited International
(Singapore) Pte
LTD
23 Asus Technology Pte International headquarters for brand Asustek Computer Taiwan 7.7 1.6
Limited management, shared services, etc Inc. Province of
China
24 Petro Progress Pte Ltd Trading of crude oil and petroleum AOC Holdings, Inc. Japan 7.0 0.4
products
25 Pertamina Energy Oil and petrochemical trading Pertamina (Persero), Indonesia 6.9 0.4
Services Pte Ltd PT

Source: The author, based on OneSource, a subscription database.

a
Information is shown as at end of 2008.
 16

Annex table 6. Singapore: top M&A deals, by inward investing firm, 2008-2010

Year Target company Acquiring company Home Target description Acquirer Value
economy description (US$
million)
2010 Parkway Holdings Ltd Integrated Healthcare Malaysia General medical and Health and 2,379.7
Holdings surgical hospitals allied services
2010 Fraser & Neave Ltd Kirin Holdings Co Japan Bottled and canned Malt beverages 974.7
Ltd soft drinks and
carbonated waters
2010 Parkway Holdings Ltd Fortis Healthcare Ltd India General medical and General medical 685.3
surgical hospitals and surgical
hospitals
2010 Asian Genco Pte Ltd Investor Group United States Special trade Investors 425.0
contractors
2010 Chevron House Deka Immobilien Germany Operators of Real estate 404.8
Invest GmbH nonresidential agents and
buildings managers
2010 UOB Life Assurance Ltd Prudential PLC United Life insurance Investment 306.9
Kingdom offices
2010 KS Energy Services Ltd- Actis Capital LLP United Crude petroleum and Investors 229.7
Oil,gas Kingdom natural gas
2010 Sin Cheng Holdings Pte Intime Department Hong Kong Investors Department 208.2
Ltd Store (HK) (China) stores
2010 PetroJack IV Pte-Petrojack Seadrill Management Norway Crude petroleum and Drilling oil and 180.0
IV AS natural gas gas wells
2010 Yantai Raffles Shipyard China Intl Marine China Marine cargo handling Metal shipping 142.5
Ltd Containers barrels, drums,
kegs and pails
2009 Chartered Semiconductor Advanced Tech United Arab Semiconductors and Management 3,923.2
Mnfg Invest Co LLC Emirates related devices investment
offices, open-
end
2009 PowerSeraya Ltd YTL Power Malaysia Electric and other Electric services 2,356.6
International Bhd services combined
2009 KrisEnergy Holdings Ltd First Reserve Corp United States Crude petroleum and Investors 500.0
natural gas
2009 Airfoil Tech Intl Singapore General Electric United States General automotive Aircraft engines 300.0
Pt Aircraft repair shops and engine parts
2009 Peace Base Investments Investor Group Hong Kong Offices of holding Investors 165.1
Ltd (China) companies
2009 Global Tender Barges Pte PHM Holdco 10 BV Netherlands Oil and gas field Investors 110.0
Ltd machinery and
equipment
2009 Resource Holdings Ltd Keller Holdings Ltd United Engineering services Engineering 84.7
Kingdom services
2009 Sincere Watch Ltd Sincere Holdings Cayman Jewelry, watches, and Investors 79.6
Islands precious stones and
metals
2009 Orchard Maritime Jasapower Indonesia Indonesia Deep sea foreign Bituminous coal 78.6
Logistics Pte PT transportation of and lignite
freight surface mining
2009 Spansion Hldg Pte Ltd Powertech British Semiconductors and Semiconductors 51.0
Hldg(BVI)Inc Virgin related devices and related
Islands devices
2008 Labroy Marine Ltd Dubai Drydocks United Arab Ship building and Ship building 1,597.9
World LLC Emirates repairing and repairing
 17

2008 JTC Corp-Indl Ppty Arcapita Bank BSC Bahrain Land subdividers and Investors 1,255.7
Portfolio developers, except
cemeteries
2008 Sorak Finl Holdings Pte Malayan Banking Malaysia Offices of holding Banks 1,255.7
Ltd Bhd companies
2008 Pearl Energy Ltd Mubadala United Arab Crude petroleum and Management 877.5
Development Co Emirates natural gas investment
PJSC offices, open-
end
2008 Singapore Shenton Hldg Commerz Germany Land subdividers and Real estate 449.7
Pte-78 Grundbesitz developers, except investment
Investment cemeteries trusts
2008 Parkway Holdings Ltd Khazanah Nasional Malaysia General medical and Management 391.9
Bhd surgical hospitals investment
offices, open-
end
2008 Sincere Watch Ltd A-A United Ltd Hong Kong Jewelry, watches, and Watches, 373.3
(China) precious stones and clocks,
metals clockwork
operated
devices, parts
2008 Hua Lei Holdings Pte Ltd Sky Property Ireland Land subdividers and Real estate 352.0
Management Ltd developers, except agents and
cemeteries managers
2008 Drayton Pte Ltd Indofood Sukses Indonesia Fluid milk Macaroni, 350.0
Makmur Tbk PT spaghetti,
vermicelli and
noodles
2008 Delong Holdings Ltd Evraz Group SA Russian Steel springs, except Steel foundries 283.8
Federation wire

Source: The author, based on Thomson Reuters, Thomson ONE Banker.

 18

Annex table 7. Singapore: top greenfield projects announced, by inward investing firm,
2008-2010
Investment
Year Investing company Home economy Industry Business activity (US$
million)
United Microelectronics Taiwan, Province
2010 (UMC) of China Semiconductors Manufacturing 3,600.0
2010 Standard Chartered Bank United Kingdom Financial services Business services 1,581.0a
Office Busters Corp Business machines and
2010 (OfficeBusters) Japan equipment Recycling 617.0
2010 ExxonMobil United States Coal, oil and natural gas Manufacturing 406.0a
Australia and New Zealand
2010 Banking Group (ANZ Bank) Australia Financial services Business services 395.2a
Business machines and
2010 Mitsubishi Corporation Japan equipment Manufacturing 360.9a
Business machines and
2010 Showa Denko KK (SDK) Japan equipment Manufacturing 360.9a
2010 Veeco Instruments United States Electronic components Manufacturing 258.5a
Research and
2010 Procter & Gamble (P&G) United States Consumer products development 250.0
Metallized Carbon Corporation
2010 (Mectar) United States Metals Manufacturing 199.7a
2009 China Huaneng China Alternative/renewable energy Electricity 1,431.4
2009 ExxonMobil United States Coal, oil and natural gas Electricity 658.9a
2009 Roche Group Switzerland Pharmaceuticals Manufacturing 500.0
2009 Isetan Japan Real estate Construction 373.2a
Hong Kong,
2009 Sun Hung Kai Properties China Real estate Construction 373.2a
Advanced Micro Devices
2009 (AMD) United States Semiconductors Headquarters 320.5a
2009 Baxter United States Pharmaceuticals Manufacturing 291.8a
United Microelectronics Taiwan, Province
2009 (UMC) of China Semiconductors Manufacturing 230.1a
ICT and internet
2009 Tata Group India Communications infrastructure 180.0
Fairmont Raffles Hotels
2009 International Canada Hotels and tourism Construction 160.5a
2008 Macquarie Bank Australia Real Estate Construction 2,000.0
2008 Lanxess Germany Rubber Manufacturing 592.6
Hong Kong,
2008 UDL Holdings China Warehousing and storage Manufacturing 471.9a
2008 Citco Group Netherlands Financial services Business services 327.9a
Design,
development and
2008 Ubisoft Entertainment France Software and IT services testing 320.2a
2008 Scatec AS Norway Alternative/renewable energy Manufacturing 300.0
Korea, Republic
2008 Hanyang Eng of Semiconductors Manufacturing 230.1a
2008 Tanaka Kikinzoku Group Japan Metals Manufacturing 203.5a
2008 Asahi Kasei Japan Rubber Manufacturing 185.0
2008 Air Liquide France Chemicals Manufacturing 181.2

Source: The author, based on fDi Intelligence, a service from the Financial Times Ltd.
a
Estimated investment.