India, Singapore look at further cementing economic ties

Singapore: Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman and Singapore Prime Minister Lawrence Wong on Friday discussed ways to further strengthen economic, financial, investment, and business ties between the two countries, according to an official statement.

Finance Minister Sitharaman, who is on a visit to the Southeast Asian city-state, shared select projects from the National Investment and Infrastructure Fund (NIIF) official pipeline and highlighted India’s strong economic fundamentals to encourage greater investment by Singapore-based investors.

PM Wong noted that bilateral cooperation between India and Singapore continues to grow and expressed optimism about India’s growth prospects.

The two leaders also reviewed progress in advancing the outcomes of the 4th India-Singapore Ministerial Roundtable (ISMR), including cooperation in capital markets, payments connectivity and digitalisation, semiconductors, AI, and cybersecurity.

Discussions also covered tokenisation of financial assets and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs), with Singapore expressing keenness to share its experience in asset tokenisation.

Besides, the two ministers exchanged views on regional and global developments and on strengthening India-ASEAN cooperation, including in the run-up to Singapore’s ASEAN Chairmanship in 2027.

Finance Minister Sitharaman called on President Tharman Shanmugaratnam as well. The meeting provided an opportunity to exchange views on taking forward the Comprehensive Strategic Partnership and further strengthening bilateral cooperation.

She also participated in a Business Roundtable with senior representatives of leading global investment firms, including Millennium Partners, Brevan Howard, BlackRock, PIMCO, Carlyle, ADIA, Temasek, Citadel, JPMorgan and Deutsche Bank, in Singapore, today.

The interaction focused on India’s economic resilience amid global uncertainties, including volatile oil prices and geopolitical and geoeconomic developments, as well as the opportunities and challenges arising from rapid advances in Artificial Intelligence.

The Finance Minister exchanged views with global investors on India’s macroeconomic fundamentals, financial markets and measures to further deepen market participation and attract global capital in Indian assets. The roundtable provided an opportunity for a candid exchange of perspectives with leading global investors on India’s evolving economic and financial landscape.

Sitharaman also met Singapore's Foreign Affairs Minister Vivian Bala and exchanged views on the prevailing geopolitical situation and global economic headwinds impacting equity, bonds and FX markets. They also discussed India’s economic performance, GDP growth, FDI trends, foreign exchange reserves and ongoing policy reforms.

She reaffirmed her government's commitment to sustaining the reform momentum and pursuing macroeconomic policies that support inclusive growth and price stability.

Discussions also covered opportunities for cooperation in semiconductors, AI, data centres, tokenisation and central bank digital currencies (CBDCs). Both sides welcomed collaboration between their respective central banks on emerging technologies.

The Finance Minister also mentioned the list of select infrastructure projects prepared for consideration by Singapore investors, including GIC and Temasek, highlighting the potential to further strengthen bilateral investment ties.

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