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CIA Factbook:
Singapore has 8th highest public debt
in the world after bankrupt Greece
January 7th, 2011 | Author: Editorial
According to the latest CIA Factbook
released in 2010, Singapore has the
8th highest public debt to GDP ratio
in the world after bankrupt states
Zimbabwe (1st) and Greece (6th):
[Source: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_sovereign_states_by_public_debt]
Public debt to GDP ratio is a measure
of a country’s public debt in relation
to its gross domestic product (GDP).
By comparing what a country owes
and what it produces, the debt-to-GDP
ratio indicates the country’s ability to
pay back its debt. The ratio is a
coverage ratio on a national level.
This measure gives an idea of the
ability of a country to make future
payments on its debt. If a country
were unable to pay its debt, it would
default, which could cause a panic in
the domestic and international markets.
The higher the debt-to-GDP ratio, the
less likely the country will pay its
debt back, and the higher its risk
of default.
The shocking result does not seem
to commensurate with Singapore’s
’spectacular’ growth of 14.7 percent
last year which was harped on
non-stop ad nauseam by PAP leaders
and the mainstream media.
As expected, the above findings are
not reported by the Singapore media
which continue to churn out tonnes
of ‘good news’ to give the public an
erroneous impression that the
Singapore economy is ‘booming.’
An updated UBS study published last
year August revealed that Singaporeans
now have lower domestic wages and
purchasing power after four years of PAP rule.
Another economic indicator in which
official data is lacking is Singapore’s
‘household debt to GDP ratio’ which
will give us a better idea about the
economic conditions on the ground.
.
Pamela
