Introduction
Background
A Malay trading port known as Temasek existed on the island of Singapore by the 14th century. The settlement changed hands several times and was eventually burned in the 17th century. In 1819, the British founded modern Singapore as a trading colony on the same site. It joined the Malaysian Federation in 1963 but was ousted two years later and became independent.
Geography
Area
total : 719 sq km
land: 709.2 sq km
water: 10 sq km
Climate
tropical; hot, humid, rainy; two distinct monsoon seasons - northeastern monsoon (December to March) and southwestern monsoon (June to September); inter-monsoon - frequent afternoon and early evening thunderstorms
Natural resources
fish, deepwater ports
People and Society
Population
total: 6,028,459
Ethnic groups
Chinese 74.2%, Malay 13.7%, Indian 8.9%, other 3.2% (2021 est.)
Languages
English (official) 48.3%, Mandarin (official) 29.9%, other Chinese dialects (includes Hokkien, Cantonese, Teochew, Hakka) 8.7%, Malay (official) 9.2%, Tamil (official) 2.5%, other 1.4% (2020 est.)
Religions
Buddhist 31.1%, Christian 18.9%, Muslim 15.6%, Taoist 8.8%, Hindu 5%, other 0.6%, none 20% (2020 est.)
Population growth rate
0.87% (2024 est.)
Government
Government type
parliamentary republic
Capital
name: Singapore
Executive branch
chief of state: President THARMAN Shanmugaratnam (since 14 September 2023)
head of government: Prime Minister Lawrence WONG (since 15 May 2024)
Legislative branch
summary: unicameral Parliament (104 seats)
Diplomatic representation in the US
chief of mission: Ambassador LUI Tuck Yew (since 30 June 2023)
Diplomatic representation from the US
chief of mission: Ambassador Jonathan KAPLAN (since December 2021)
Economy
Economic overview
high-income, service-based Southeast Asian economy; renowned for financial markets and Asian Infrastructure Exchange; business-driven regulations; low unemployment; electronics, oil, and chemicals exporter; continuing education investment
Real GDP (purchasing power parity)
$754.758 billion (2023 est.)
$746.73 billion (2022 est.)
$719.13 billion (2021 est.)
Real GDP per capita
$127,500 (2023 est.)
$132,500 (2022 est.)
$131,900 (2021 est.)
Exports
$873.989 billion (2023 est.)
$925.952 billion (2022 est.)
$794.47 billion (2021 est.)
Exports - partners
Hong Kong 14%, China 13%, Malaysia 9%, US 8%, Indonesia 6% (2022)
Exports - commodities
integrated circuits, refined petroleum, machinery, gold, gas turbines (2022)
Imports
$686.656 billion (2023 est.)
$733.876 billion (2022 est.)
$637.165 billion (2021 est.)
Imports - partners
China 17%, Malaysia 13%, US 10%, Taiwan 9%, South Korea 5% (2022)
Imports - commodities
integrated circuits, refined petroleum, crude petroleum, gold, machinery (2022)
Page last updated: Tuesday, October 01, 2024
