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Key Data on Bottom 20% of Households
Ministerial Committee on Low Wage Workers
Data Brief
Singapore has done well over the past 40 years. Our
nominal GDP in S$ has grown over 27 times since independence (see
Table 1, column 2). Compared to other countries, we have also done
well. With strong compounded annual growth, we have caught up with
countries such as France and Italy, and are just below UK, Germany
and Sweden (see Table 2 - see comparison based on real GDP and
in US$, adjusted for Purchasing Power Parity (PPP).
Table 1: Nominal GDP per Capita,
1965-2004
|
Year
|
GDP (S$)
|
GDP (US$)
|
|
1965 |
1,567 |
512 |
|
1975 |
5,941 |
2,505 |
|
1985 |
14,226 |
6,466 |
|
1995 |
33,743 |
23,806 |
|
2004 |
42,581 |
25,191 |
Source: Department of Statistics
Table 2: Per Capita GDP in
Purchasing Power Parity Terms
|
Country
|
Per Capita GDP in PPP terms
(US$) |
|
United Kingdom |
28,968.0 |
|
Germany |
28,888.5 |
|
Sweden |
28,205.3 |
|
Italy |
28,171.6 |
|
France |
27,913.3 |
|
Singapore
|
26,799.2 |
|
Taiwan |
25,614.1 |
Source: IMF World Economic Outlook Database
The bottom 20% have benefited from growth
The fruits of our growth have been spread to most Singaporeans.
Household incomes have risen significantly across the board (Table
3). In addition, quality of life, as measured by ownership of
consumer durables, has improved even for the bottom 20% of
households (Table 4). Our home ownership rates among the bottom 20%
are the highest in the world, giving even the poorest households a
strong stake in the country. (Tables 5 and 6).
Table 3: Household Income1
per Capita (incl rebates), 1993-2003
|
Per Capita
Income Group |
Income + Rebates
|
% Change per annum
|
|
1993 |
1998 |
2003 |
1998/1993 |
2003/1998 |
|
Bottom 20% |
240 |
306 |
308 |
9.9 |
0.1 |
|
Second Quintile |
422 |
610 |
660 |
10.1 |
1.6 |
|
Third Quintile |
620 |
942 |
1029 |
10.6 |
1.8 |
|
Fourth Quintile |
929 |
1425 |
1597 |
10.4 |
2.3 |
|
Highest 20% |
2072 |
3216 |
3816 |
9.5 |
3.5 |
Source: Household Expenditure Survey 02/03
Table 4: Ownership of Consumer
Goods amongst the bottom 20% of households2
|
Durables
|
1998
|
2003
|
|
Television |
97 |
98 |
|
Audio / Video Compact Disc Player |
41 |
69 |
|
Cable TV Subscription |
8.1 |
20 |
|
Refrigerator |
98 |
98 |
|
Microwave Oven |
24 |
38 |
|
Air-conditioner |
37 |
50 |
|
Handphone |
29 |
72 |
|
Personal Computer |
25 |
48 |
|
Internet Subscription / Access |
7.1 |
31 |
Source: Household Expenditure Survey 02/03
Table 5: Home Ownership Rates
for Households by Quintile3, 1998-2003
|
Year
|
1998
|
2003
|
|
Bottom 20% |
84 |
87 |
|
Second Quintile |
90 |
94 |
|
Third Quintile |
92 |
95 |
|
Fourth Quintile |
94 |
94 |
|
Highest 20% |
93 |
90 |
Source: Household Expenditure Survey 02/03
Table 6: Cross Country
Home-Ownership rates of the bottom 20% of households
|
Country
|
Home Ownership
|
|
Singapore |
87% |
|
United States |
46% |
|
United Kingdom |
52% |
Source: Household Expenditure Survey 02/03,
various international government statistics
The bottom 20% of households in
Singapore has significant assets in the form of equity in their
house as well as CPF, placing them in good stead for the future.
Table 7: Average Home Equity and CPF Balances of
bottom 20% of households
|
Category |
Amount ($) |
|
Home Equity
|
138,000 |
|
Net CPF
Balances |
33,000 |
|
Medisave
Balances |
16,000 |
Source: Department of Statistics
1 Income data
excludes imputed rental. In addition, as data on 1-person household
were not collected in the HES 92/93, they were not included when
comparing 1993 and 1998. Finally, rebates included rents and
utilities rebates for HDB flats and ERS.
2 This differs slightly from the published results
of the household expenditure survey, as the earlier study ranked
households by total income.
3 Quintiles are ranked by per capita household
income, including 1-person households.
Source:
www.mom.gov.sg Press Release 30
Aug 2005
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2005
