Are You Focusing Your Business on One of the World’s Fastest Growing Regions?
Southeast Asia is one of the fastest developing regions in the world and Singapore is in the heart of it!
With Asia predicted to be the main driving force behind the global economic recovery from the Covid-19 pandemic, the region is expected to play an increasingly important role in business growth. Multinational companies are already pouring huge amounts of investment into the region and large banks like HSBC are relocating top executives from their HQ in London to Hong Kong as part of their ‘pivot to Asia’. Local Asia businesses like Grab and Lazada are also receiving strong overseas capital financing and growing in global recognition.
Source: Credit Suisse
According to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), despite the challenges in 2020, the economy of ‘Emerging and Developing Asia’ showed its resilience by only falling 1.7%, while the rest of the world retracted more than double that at 4.4%. In 2021, Asia is predicted to continue to recover strongly, boasting an impressive 8% forecasted increase for the year. As the world looks to Asia for growth, businesses need to prepare a strategy to expand their operations in the region, if they want to keep up with this Asia-centric trend.
Source: International Monetary Fund (IMF)
Why Selecting Singapore as Your Hub for Asia Operations is the Smart Move
When selecting a location to expand your operations in a new region it is important to consider many factors. No two locations are the same, with some cities being more business-friendly and some with stricter regulations. Infrastructure, positioning, workforce talent, ease of doing business, and tax rates should impact your final decision as all these factors will determine your business’ ability to expand successfully in Asia.
For businesses looking to expand their Asia operations, Singapore should come to the forefront. As Southeast Asia’s most developed and business-friendly city, the Lion City has many positive aspects going for it. A well-educated population, strong legal framework, and excellent business support make the city-state the envy of Asia. So it comes as no surprise that many businesses choose Singapore as the hub for their Asia business operations.
Chinese tech giants like Tencent, Alibaba, and Baidu have all recently selected Singapore as their Southeast Asia hub as they look to deepen their exposure in one of the world’s fastest-growing consumer markets. If businesses wish to take a slice of the increasingly strong market, they should act now!
Want to expand your business overseas quickly and effortlessly? Learn more about Links International’s PEO/EoR services now by contacting our team of professionals!
Considerations When Starting a Business in Singapore
There are still many considerations for leaders to take before they expand into Singapore. Even though starting a business in Singapore is relatively simple compared to other countries, the rules and regulations can still be quite different from the locations of your current operations.
For example, it is mandatory for employers to pay the Central Provident Fund (CPF) to employees who are permanent residents in Singapore, while hiring workers from overseas employers are required to pay a monthly Foreign Workers Levy (FWL), and in some cases, a Skills Development Levy (SDL).
To learn more, join our free Singapore Labour Law Workshop webinar, where we will go through information like maternity leave, severance pay, tax payment, compensation, and much more:
Learn More About Singapore Labour Laws in Our Upcoming Webinar
The event has ended. Download the deck and video here to relive the event!
Do you want to know more about the local laws and regulations of Singapore? Links International is holding a complimentary Singapore labour law, payroll, and compliance workshop webinar to go through the most important regulations business leaders need to know! If you are a business located in Singapore or you are planning to expand there, then this is the perfect opportunity for you to ask an expert on business in the city-state.
Hosting the webinar will be Links’ Associate Director, Phoebe Wong, and Payroll Manager, Louise Lau. Both have over 10 years of experience in the HR Outsourcing industry and have ample expertise on Singapore. Sign up for the webinar now!
Event Rundown:
- Singapore Labour Law & Compliance
- Singapore Payroll Basics
- Q&A Session
Key Speakers:
Associate Director – HRO
Payroll Manager
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Links International is an industry leader in innovative HR outsourcing with services such as payroll outsourcing, visa application, PEO/EOR Secondment, outplacement, recruitment and more! Contact us for more information on how we can help leverage your HR function.
