Essay: Market entry strategy project – Singapore

For my market entry strategy project, I chose to write about Singapore. The reason I chose Singapore is because my dad is currently working there. He was recently transferred from Chicago to Singapore. I’ve had a chance to visit a couple times with my brothers, and I really enjoyed the city. After having the opportunity to visit I have decided that I would like to move there someday, maybe for work or retirement. I’ve only spent a couple weeks in Singapore but I can firmly say I like it a lot better than here in America. Not only is it a tropical climate year around but Singapore is like the United States in the sense that it is a “melting pot” but of the east. There are people from all over the world that live in Singapore and it is much more diverse than most cities in America. There are 4 national languages, one being English and everyone I met spoke English very well, however there are many different languages, religions and cultures that are practiced and celebrated in Singapore. Before I get started on the market entry strategy project lets briefly discuss the history of Singapore.
The earliest known historical records of Singapore are shrouded in time, a third century Chinese account describes it as “Pu Luo Chung” or the island at the end of the peninsula. Later, but still a long time ago, this city was known as “Temasek” or Sea Town. The name Singapore comes from a 14th century legend of a Srivijayan (Indonesian) Prince named Sang Nila Utama. The prince was visiting Sea Town for a hunting trip when he caught sight of an exotic animal he had never seen before. The Prince thought this to be a good sign so he founded a city where the animal had been spotted and he named it The Lion City or “Singapura” from the Sanskrit words “simha” (lion) and “pura” (city). The ancient city Singapura was ruled for centuries by 5 kings. Since it was located on the tip of the Malay Peninsula, the natural meeting point of sea routes, the city flourished as a trading post for the Chinese, Arabs, Portuguese, and Buginese.
Modern day Singapore was founded in the 19th century thanks to a British statesman named Sir Thomas Stamford Raffles. During this time the British empire was looking for a port in the region of South Asia and Singapore seemed most ideal. In 1819, Sir Thomas, who was the Lieutenant Governor of Bencoolen (Bengkulu) in Sumatra, came to the jungly swamp covered island known as Singapura. Raffles negotiated a treaty with the local rulers and established Singapore as a trading station for the British empire. Raffles then implemented a plan known as the Raffles Town Plan where he split up the town into 4 ethnic regions. One section each for Europeans, Indians, Chinese, and Arabs/Malays. This Town Plan is still implemented somewhat today because modern day Singapore has many areas that are split up ethnically, some areas are known as Little India, Arab Town, China Town, etc. After the raffles plan many foreigners began to migrate to Singapore and the city began to rapidly develop and become a key location for banks, commercial associations, and Chambers of Commerce. Singapore would continue to prosper until WWII.
During WWII Singapore suffered a major blow when the Japanese attacked. The invaders arrived from the north, which caught the British off guard because they expected them to arrive by sea from the south. This invasion was known as the Battle of Singapore or the Fall of Singapore. The Japanese completely slaughtered everyone and committed many war crimes along the way, including the Alexandra Hospital Massacre and the “Sook Ching”; Chinese purge. Singapore suffered about 50,000 deaths during this battle and the Japanese only suffered 1,714 deaths. The British were forced to raise the white flag on Chinese New Year February 15th, 1942 and what was once known as the impregnable fortress was renamed to “Synon-to” which is Japanese for Light of the South Island. After the war ended Singapore was reclaimed from the Japanese. In 1959 Singapore became a nationalist country and held its first general election where the Peoples Action Party won and Lee Kuan Yew became the first prime minister of Singapore. In 1965 Singapore became an independent and sovereign democratic nation.
Today, many slices of Singapores multi-cultural, colonial, and wartime past are preserved in and around the city. People can visit the monuments, museums, memorials and even walk along heritage trail.
Market Entry Strategy Project:
Singapore is a developed country with a gross domestic product of 323.9 billion USD (reported in 2017), which is impressive. Singapore is ranked #1 along side South Korea for highest GDP growth rate. The GDP per capita in Singapore was 57,714.30 USD (reported in 2017) which is higher than both Hong Kong and Japan. At the end of this current quarter the GDP PPP for Singapore is expected to be 86,460 USD and in 2020 is expected to reach around 90,000 USD. Singapore is ranked #9 on the human development index. The quality of life in Singapore is amazing, its is considered the safest, cleanest, greenest, and one of the most innovated cities in the world which is why it is ranked so high on the HDI.
Singapore is a highly developed market economy and most of its growth has happened recently. Singapore is one of the original Four Asian Tigers. The Four Asian Tigers also referred to as “the Asian Miracle” are the economies that make up South Korea, Hong Kong, Taiwan, and Singapore. These Tigers underwent rapid industrialization and maintained exceptionally high growth rates between the 1960’s – 1990’s. By the 21st century all four had developed into high income economies. Singapore would lead international financial centre. This includes large capital banks, insurance companies, investment funds, and stock exchange. Singapores economic success has served as a role model for many developing countries. A world bank report credited neoliberal policies responsible for the boom. These included export oriented policies, low taxes, high level equal distribution of wealth, and minimal welfare states.
As Singapore boomed they underwent an economic transition. Singapore decided to take after Japan by transitioning to technological innovations and also heavily investing into infrastructure and education. This strategy was proving extremely successful in Japan so many other Asian countries followed suit.
Singapore is a democratic republic. They have strict but fair laws and the citizens abide by them. Singapore is considered to be the safest city in the world. Singapore posses a stable government with fair policies for the both human prosperity and economic growth. Singapore is manages the economy very well and it would be unlikely for political risk to threaten the economy and well being of the people.
Singapores international relations are great. They are on good terms with all major nations. Since they serve as a major import/export location for Asia they do business with nearly every developed and developing country in the world. Singapore maintains diplomatic relations with 189 countries. Their most important partners are with Malaysia and Indonesia due to location. They also maintain very good relations with the USA, United Kingdom, Australia, and New Zealand. They also participated in peacekeepers with the UN in order to maintain peace in Africa. Overall Singapore’s international relations are great with both the west and the east.
Singapore is very globalized country and is home to hundreds of multinational companies. Most of the big businesses are banks and insurance companies, this is because Singapore is the financial capital of Asia. The largest bank in Singapore earned a revenue of 3.2 billion USD in 2016. Globalization has influenced Singapore in a lot of different ways. For starters Singapore took this opportunity to maximum growth and revenues and reinvest that money into infrastructure and new businesses and opportunities.
One way Singapore was able to expand so quickly was by taking many people from less developed countries such as Thailand, Indonesia, Malaysia, Vietnam, and the Philippines and giving them job in the labor force. This is very good for Singapore, the neighboring countries, and the labor workers because wealth is being distributed and these workers keep the city clean and maintain the look and feel Singapore. Everyday you will see hundreds of workers trimming, nurturing, and caring for the environment, which is why Singapore is known as the cleanest and greenest city in the world. These workers also do construction everyday and are creating new buildings, homes, and projects. Singapore has even started reclaiming land from the sea and is forever expanding the city. By 2030 the government plans to expand the city 7-8%. None of this would happen if Singapore didn’t have these labor workers. Singapore is one of the wealthiest countries in the world and their is certainly a wage gap between the people however, most of the labor workers that earn low wages come from countries where they would be making pennies, so even though they are considered less wealthy in Singapore they are rich compared to their homeland and through these opportunities the Singapore government has provided these workers are able to easily support themselves and their families as well as grow their economy. Overall the wealth distribution is balanced, but like in America, China, and Japan there are folks that are extremely wealthy comparatively.
In 2018, According to statista.com, Singapore was ranked #24 on the KOF globalization index but according to sbr.com Singapore is ranked the “third most globalized economy”. This statement was based on 5 different criteria: openness to trade, capital movements, exchange of technology and ideas, labor movements, and cultural integration. Besides a high standard of living, Singapore can offer a lot to new businesses because they are one of the most technological advanced and innovated countries in the world. Singapore has a lot of capital and resources too. However, it is very hard to start a business in Singapore as well as become a resident.
Singapore is one of the most diverse countries in the world. A majority of the population is Chinese but there are many people from all around the world that reside in Singapore. This includes people from Southeast Asia ( Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, Indonesia, Indians), Japanese, Chinese, Mongolians, Arabs, Europeans, Australias, Americans, Africans and many more. In 1991 the government released a shared list of values that all citizens should adopt. This list includes: Nation before community and society above self, Family as the basic unit of society, community support and respect for the individual, consensus, not conflict, and racial and religious harmony. Since most of Singapores neighbors are communist and/or undeveloped countries the people of Singapore really value freedom, opportunity and democracy.
Another things Singaporeans hold dear is the their culture and history. In Singapore there are many different churches, temples, mosque, etc. that are located throughout the city and everyone respects each others views and values. The people in Singapore judge someone not by their looks or culture but by their character and status. The business lifestyle of Singapore is very much like America and Japan in the sense that it is full of big corporations, banks and government businesses but they also have a lot small businesses owned by locals. The business lifestyle in Singapore is similar developed democratic Nations like the USA and Japan. They have a standard work day and a lot of times are working off the clock. Since they do a lot of international business and the hours conflict a business man or woman needs to be ready to communicate and do business at any time of the day or night. Even though most people in Singapore fluently speak English and everyone in the business world is expected to speak English communication can still be difficult. Depending on where you are from and who you are doing business with you can easily misunderstand someone. If you able to learn a a different language such as Mandarin, Japanese, or German then you will be more successful and more valuable. However Singapore is very westernized and educated so as long as you are competent, patient and adaptable anyone can be successful.
Singapores government plays a major role in both the economy and society. Since the 1959 general election Singapore has been dominated by the People’s Action Party (PAP). Singapore inherited the British laws of human rights. Singapore rejected freedom of speech because they believed freedom of speech would cause ill will towards the multicultural and multi religious society. The government and its parliament plays a hefty role in society. Singapore has a free market economy and the government regulates this. Government linked companies play a substantial role in Singapores economy. In 1965 Singapore had an unemployment rate of 14% and a GDP per capita of 516 USD so the government took action and established the economic development board to spearhead an investment drive and make Singapore attractive destination for foreign investments. This resulted in Singapore capital stock to increase 33 times by 1992 and achieved a tenfold increase in the capital labor ratio. Living standard also steadily rose through Lee Kuan Yew’s leadership. The government was able to develop a very self reliant and skilled workforce. As reported in 2013 Singapore had an unemployment rate of 1.8%. Singapore’s legal system is based on the English common law system, this means that the body of law is derived from judicial decisions of courts and similar tribunals. Singapore has some interesting laws such as no spitting or chewing gum or being naked in your home without the blinds being shut, they have these laws to maintain a clean city and society. The legal system is very effective because there is nearly no crime in the city and Singapore is considered one of the safest places in the world. The city also has strict laws and regulations about environmental concerns. This makes them a leader in environmental innovation but also keeps the city clean and green. Singapore is perceived not to be corrupt. The most corrupt things that have happened were things involving money and bribes with government officials and businesses. Overall Singapore’s government has done really well for both the well being of the people and the status of the city and economy.
Singapore is a fairly new independent sovereign nation but they managed to rapidly grow into one of the major globalized economies of the world. Singapore was able to increased the GDP per capita from 516 USD to 57,714.30 USD in just 50 years though the help of the APA and Lee Kuan Yew. Singapore is a very unique and diverse country and the government cares deeply about the state of the people, the city, and the economy. Both the economy and the standard of living has skyrocketed since the 60’s which has attracted people from across the world to visit, work, move, and do business in Singapore.