I strongly believe that a ‘living wage’ is one of many such measures, amongst a whole suite of others that should be considered even to the most pragmatic of economic minds. And this is as ‘pragmatic’ as it is ‘humanistic’ or ‘idealistic’ – coming from a country which loves to accentuate the difference. I...
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An educated work force is not essential for economic growth. Neither is a high saving rate. Manufacturing is not the most influential economic sector. These contrarian conclusions come from a book by William W. Lewis, the founding director of the McKinsey Global Institute, a division of the McKinsey & Company consulting firm.
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Recently, a new buzzword has emerged in the local media – productivity. It all begun in December 2009 when the Reform Party publicised its economy policy proposals at a party seminar which attracted quite a significant fanfare locally. The fanfare for productivity peaked twice - first during the public annoucement of the release of...
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Singapore’s re-invention won’t be easy – but it doesn’t matter. Singapore has made mistakes in its attempt to push its economy in new directions. Attempts to promote the Singapore exchange to Chinese firms looking for a foreign listing, led to lower standards and a series of scandals, as I discussed here: Why you must...
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