The US government announced comprehensive tariffs on all imports, with a baseline rate of 10% for countries including Singapore.
Singapore is trying to negotiate concessions regarding pharmaceutical exports to the United States while ensuring they get access to high-end AI chips from America.
Deputy Prime Minister Gan Kim Yong stated that the US wants “creative solutions” for certain critical exports from Singapore (pharmaceuticals included), and Singapore wants to discuss global tariffs imposed by the US government.
Mr Gan, also Minister of Trade and Industry, stated that Howard Lutnick, US Secretary of Commerce, was ready to discuss with them, who are a significant trading partner.
Mr Gan leads the Singapore Economic Resilience Taskforce, which examines the effects of tariffs.
He also serves as an anchor minister for the People’s Action Party (PAP), competing in Punggol GRC in the General Election. But he decided to take some time away from campaigning to have negotiations.
On April 2, the US government announced comprehensive tariffs on all imports, with a baseline rate of 10% for countries including Singapore. China and a few other trading partners were slapped with increased tariffs. There is a 90-day pause in most countries with high reciprocal tariffs.
When Mr Lutnick and Mr Gan had negotiation talks, he explained that 10% baseline tariffs are unlikely to be negotiated.
However, he made the deal to explore innovative solutions with Singapore to strengthen the bilateral trade between them, especially related to critical exports from Singapore to the United States since Singapore is a significant trading partner.
This includes items like pharmaceuticals, which are significant to the city as they contribute more than 10% of the country’s exports to the US.
They also discussed artificial intelligence (AI) chips. Mr. Gan stated they want to ensure their companies have access to technology crucial for their data centers.
He stated that the US is worried about chip export, not only in Singapore.
Singapore fined three people with accusations of purchasing Nvidia chips and shipping them to Malaysia.
Mr Lutnick wants to speed up the discussions since America needs to negotiate with many other countries. Mr Gan stated that his team needs to determine the scope of negotiations and develop an implementation plan before arriving at a timeline to implement it.
Mr Gan added that Singapore’s advantage is that it is a small country. So it can quickly move forward and respond to changes with agility.
They also have a highly capable team negotiating the specific, under guidance and direction from the political office holders.
The minister also apologized to the residents of Punggol GRC for taking time off the campaign trail to deal with this issue.
Regarding whether the issue will affect the voters’ choice, Mr Gan replies that he is concentrating on doing the right thing for Singapore, and it is up to the voters to choose how they want to cast their votes.
During the rally on Saturday, Mr Gan addressed his ongoing discussions with US counterparts regarding the tariffs.
He stated that the US is ready to discuss openly with them due to an enduring relationship between the People’s Action Party and the US government.
He adds that they plan to create more opportunities for the city-state.
On the same day, Prime Minister Lawrence Wong addressed the matter in his speech at another rally in Choa Chu Kang.
The wealthy city-state also revised its gross domestic product (GDP) for the year down to 0%-2% after a quarter-on-quarter contraction of 0.8% in Q1 2025.
Singapore is set to hold the general elections on May 3 amid cost-of-living pressures weighing heavily on voter’s minds.
