- Obama Chides Republicans, Demands Speed on Stimulus
- Breaking Down The Stimulus Bill
- Riskier Bonds Starting to Get Investors' Attention
- GE Says It Will 'Evaluate' Dividend for Second Half
- Final Stimulus Bill May Look Leaner In The End
- Obama To Visit Florida, Indiana To Push Stimulus
- Do Markets Really Think Stimulus Plan Will Work?
- Job Cuts Reaction: What the Experts Think
- Job Cuts Keep Coming—Is Your Firm On the List?
- Lightning Round: UPS, Corning, Wyndham and More
- Lightning Round OT: Harley-Davidson, Hartford Financial and More
- Game Plan: Obama’s Second Honeymoon?
- Speculating on GMX Resources
- Cramer: 10 Reasons This Market’s Better Than You Think
- Subway Keeps Phelps
- Your First Move For Monday February 9th
- Web Extra: Fast & Furious Trades For Monday
- The Wine Bailout
Text Size 
Singapore is considering dipping into its foreign reserves for the first time to help tackle an economic slump, the Business Times newspaper reported on Monday, quoting a senior government official.
Senior Minister Goh Chok Tong said that Prime Minister Lee Hsien Loong and Finance Minister Tharman Shanmugaratnam are considering whether to make the move, after a plunge in Singapore's trade pointed to a gloomier economic picture.
"It's a difficult decision -- because once you do that, you open the reserves to future demands which may not justify the use of the reserves," Goh, a former prime minister, told reporters on Sunday, the newspaper said.
"We've always said 'the reserves are for a rainy day'. If this is not a rainy day, I don't know what is a rainy day," the newspaper quoted Goh as saying.
Thirty percent of the cranes at the Port of Singapore Authority were sitting idle, he noted.
More From CNBC.com
- Satyam's Top Executives Ordered into Police Custody
- Asian Economies Are in Big Trouble: Analyst
- Obama Bringing "Strong Message" to Ailing Banks
- Britain Finalizes Second Bank Bailout Plan
- More Asia Pacific News
Singapore's foreign reserves totaled $174.2 billion in December, the central bank said earlier this month. The central bank steers monetary policy by managing the Singapore dollar within an undisclosed trading band.
Asked how much should be drawn from the reserves, Goh said it depended on the measures that would justify the use of the reserves.
Singapore will announce on Thursday a budget that is expected to be expansionary. Goh said the focus would be on saving jobs, after the export-dependent country was the first in Asia to fall into recession last year.
Many governments around the world have launched massive economic stimulus plans in recent months a bid to stave off more job losses and prevent an even deeper and longer recession. Both the United States and Britain are expected to announced further spending plans this week.
Print
Email
Data is a real-time snapshot *Data is delayed at least 15 minutes