Inflation expectations in Singapore have edged up from their lowest level since September 2011, said SMU on Monday (Jan 16). Weakness in global growth, exacerbated by the political and policy uncertainty particularly surrounding global trade in the US and Eurozone, might have prompted Singaporean households surveyed in December to believe that prices one year ahead might be inching up, SMU said. This was according to the latest quarterly Singapore Index of Inflation Expectations (SInDEx) survey conducted by SMU's Sim Kee Boon Institute for Financial Economics (SKBI).

Commenting on the SMU survey results, SMU Assistant Professor of Finance (Education) and principal investigator of the SInDEx Project Aurobindo Ghosh highlighted that there are two main challenges that are facing the global economy despite unmistakable signs of recovery, namely policy uncertainty and geopolitically, the Brexit vote and the results of the US presidential election as indicators of a protectionist, populist and possibly anti-trade fervour. "Against this backdrop, it is to be expected that for the consumers of a trade dependent economy like Singapore would prepare for possible increase in overall price levels,” he said.