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| Republic
of Singapore |
| Customs,
Transport and Communication |
Customs and Entry
Since Singapore is traditionally transit zone/ transhipment point
for the trade of nearby South East Asian countries most of the goods
entering Singapore are handled by the Port of Singapore Authority
(PSA). Only goods that are imported and dutiable pass through the
Singapore Customs.
When goods enter or leave Singapore companies must submit their inward
or outward declarations to the Controller of Imports & Exports.
Singapore has introduced an electronic trade documentation system
called trade net to facilitate import/export documentation. The system
ensures that goods moving into and out of Singapore are processed
with minimum delay. Through this system subscribers can have their
import and export declarations processed electronically with government
agencies and local as well as overseas trading partners. Companies
importing and exporting goods in Singapore have to contact the Singapore
Trade Development Board for a Central Registration Number. Items under
import/ export control may either require endorsement or license before
they can be processed. Companies should not enter into any financial
or contractual obligations before the necessary licenses or approvals
are obtained.
Landing permits for dutiable gods must be obtained from customs officials
and goods must be landed at a quay, wharf, customs, airport or other
designated place. Goods landed, transhipped or removed contrary to
this procedure are liable to seizure. If goods are not accounted for
within a prescribed period then fines will be levied.
For goods entering Singapore on a temporary basis, companies can apply
for an ATA Carnet serves as a guarantee against payment of import
duties. Taxes should the temporary admission period be exceeded. Goods
imported under a carnet may not be sold and must be re-exported within
this period.
If the items to be imported are subject to controls, companies must
obtain endorsement/approvals from the relevant government agencies
before importing the goods into Singapore.
Ports
The port of Singapore is the world's busiest port in terms of shipping
tonnage. The port's location at the crossroads of the main shipping
routes has facilitated Singapore's development into a principal centre
for shipping activities in South East Asia.
It is a focal point for nearly 400 shipping lines linking Singapore
to more than 700 ports in 130 countries, worldwide. There are more
than 800 ships in the port at anytime.
The port has six terminals - Tanjong Pagar, Keppel, Brani, Pasir,
Panjang and Sembawang that handle container and conventional cargo
and Jurong, which handle conventional and bulk cargo. These terminals
can accommodate all types of vessels - container ships, bulk carriers,
cargo freighters, coasters, lighters and passenger ships. Port of
Singapore Authority (PSA) runs the port of Singapore.
Airports
Singapore has eight airports with paved runaways of which two are
over 3,000 metres. The major airport is Changi airport, which is famous
throughout the world for its modern style, with a capacity of 24 million
passengers and 1.35 million tons cargo per year.
Free Trade zones/Warehouses
Singapore has seven Free Trade Zones (FTZ), six for sea borne cargo
and one for air cargo at Singapore Changi Airport, within which a
wide range of facilities and services are provided for storage and
re-export of dutiable and controlled goods.
They can also be processed and re-exported with minimum customs formalities.
The FTZ's at the port facilitate trade and promote the handling of
transhipment cargo. They offer 72 hour storage for import/export of
conventional and containerised cargo free and fourteen-day storage
for transhipment/re-export cargo free.
Within the FTZ, the Port of Singapore Authority (PSA) provides more
than two million square metres of covered and open storage space.
Outside the FTZ, PSA has over 470,000 sq.meters of covered warehouse
space. The PSA operates the Pasir Panjang Distripark, Alexandra Distripark
and Keppel Distripark.
Transport and Communication
Merchant Fleet: Number of vessels (1995) - 737
Airline: 01 National Airline - Singapore Airlines
Singapore is a major air hub in the Asia-Pacific region. It is linked
to 133 cities in 53 countries by 68 airlines, which operate more than
3,300 scheduled flights per week.
Railway: Total length 38.6 km
There is a 67 km mass rapid transit (MRT) system with 48 stations.
Roads (end 1995)
| Total Network |
2,972 km |
| Motorways |
132 km |
| Main Roads |
567 km |
| Paved |
97.3% i.e., 2,892 km |
| Density |
4.70 km |
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Vehicle Ownership
Passenger cars (1997)
| Ownership |
347,050 |
| Ownership rate |
12% |
| Trucks and Buses sales
(1995) - 7,297 |
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Telephones (1996)
| Total lines (1000 lines) |
1,429,000 |
| Proliferation rate (%) |
47.85 |
| Total demand (1000 lines) |
100 |
| Satisfied demand (%) |
83.7 |
| Capacity used (%) |
100 |
| Automatic (%) |
100 |
| Digital (%) |
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Cellular Mobile Phones (1995)
| Subscribers |
291,900 |
| Percentage of Population |
9.77 |
| As a Percentage of total telephone
subscribers |
17% |
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Singapore has a high rate of use of cellular telephones equal to that
of industrialized countries. There are four mobile phone networks:
AMPS, ETACS, ESM900 and GSM800.
TV Ownership
TV receivers (end 1995)
| Ownership |
1,080,000 |
| Ownership rate |
36.2% |
CATV (end 1995)
Ownership 39,000
In preparation for the coming age of multi-channel digital satellite
television broadcasts CATV systems are being established for relaying
satellite signals to homes. Singapore is installing cable in the home
at a rapid pace. CATV is fast becoming the leading media of choice.
| Personal
computers (end 1995) |
| Total units |
515,000 |
| Ownership rate |
17.29% |
| Internet
use (1996) |
| Number of hosts |
22,800 |
| Estimated number of users |
100,000 |
| Radios (1996) |
1,800,000 |
Newspapers
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| Dailies (English) |
Business Times
The Straits Times
The New Paper |
| (Chinese) |
Lianhe Wanbao
Lianhe Zaobao
Shin Min Daily News |
| (Malay) |
Benita Harian |
| (Tamil)
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Tamil Murasu |
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| Weeklies
(English) |
Sunday Time |
| (Malay) |
Berita Minggu |
| Periodicals (English) |
Singapore
Business (monthly - the leading business magazine) |
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