Cost of living may prompt more top-ups, transfers for families in Budget 2024

More handouts to households are likely to come in Budget 2024, said economists, as high inflation and sluggish wage growth continue to weigh on Singaporeans. Median income fell 2.2 per cent in real terms in 2023, on a slowdown in nominal income growth, recent Ministry of Manpower data showed. Still, Chua Yeow Hwee, assistant professor in economics at NTU, said that “Singaporean households have done fairly well”, with the average household still expected to see its net worth stay relatively stable in 2024. Yet with price pressures enduring, “more support could be given to the low-income households in terms of managing their cost of living”, he added. The average household could get less direct support, and lower-income groups more, under a targeted approach, he suggested. 

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