MTI disputes US trade surplus claim amid new probe targeting Singapore and 15 other economies

Singapore has a US$27 billion (S$34 billion) trade deficit with the US and "very healthy" industrial occupancy rates, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) said on Thursday (March 12).

This comes after the Office of the United States Trade Representative (USTR) launched an investigation on Wednesday against 16 major economies — including Singapore, China, South Korea and Taiwan — focusing on alleged excess manufacturing capacity.

In the USTR’s Federal Register Notice, Singapore is highlighted as having a bilateral trade surplus with the US in both goods and services amounting to US$27 billion in 2024, said MTI.

"On the contrary, according to US Bureau of Economic Analysis data, Singapore had a bilateral goods trade deficit of US$1.7 billion and a services trade deficit of US$25.1 billion with the US in 2024, amounting to a total trade deficit with the US of about US$27 billion," it stated.

MTI also disputed USTR’s suggestion that Singapore has continued to expand manufacturing capacity despite a drop in industrial occupancy rates.

Singapore’s industrial space occupancy rates are "very healthy" at around 90 per cent and have been consistently so, it added.

"Land is a scarce resource in Singapore and the amount of land set aside for industrial use has decreased over time due to other land use needs."

Probe seen as bid to replace struck-down tariffs

The probe, which was announced by US Trade Representative Jamieson Greer, is seen as setting the stage for US President Donald Trump to impose new trade tariffs.

This was after the US Supreme Court in February struck down his global trade tariffs, which have been the core of his economic policy.

The Trump administration said that the ruling will lead to hundreds of billions of dollars in lost revenue. 

In its statement, MTI said that it will be engaging the USTR to seek further clarification on the trade investigations.

"We will provide further updates when available," it added.

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chingshijie@asiaone.com