Month: February 2018

Finance Minister of Singapore Heng Swee Keat presented the budget for 2018

On Monday, Feb 19, Finance Minister of Singapore Heng Swee Keat presented the budget for 2018.

Firstly, the GST will be increased by 2 percentage points, implemented sometime from 2021 to 2025. However, it will not affect the subsidized education and healthcare, and the permanent GST voucher scheme will be topped up by $2 billion.

Secondly, the service and conservancy charges rebate will be extended for another year for eligible Housing Board households with rates remaining the same as last year.

Furthermore, Singaporeans who are 21 years old and above will receive a one-off «hongbao» up to $300, depending on the personal income.

The Proximity Housing Grant is enhanced, stimulating people to buy resale flats to live with or near their parents. Also the definition of «near» will also be revised to within 4km.

Buyer’s Stamp Duty rates will increase to 4 per cent for residential property value which is in excess of $1 million and will apply to all residential properties acquired from Feb 20.

Tobacco excise duty will increase by 10 per cent, starting from Monday, Feb 19. Further, levies will be increased for foreign domestic workers that are employed without levy concession to $300 for the first and $450 for the second worker employed.

The amount of Utilities-Save (U-Save) under the GST voucher will increase by $20 to help cover the annual impact of the carbon tax.

Finally, from Jan 1, 2020, imported digital services including apps, software, online subscriptions and business services, such as marketing, accounting, IT and management, will be taxed, even without a physical presence in Singapore. E-commerce for other goods will not be affected.

Singapore state agencies will participate in the Russia-Singapore Business Dialogue, held on April 17th, 2018 in Singapore by the Russia-Singapore Business Council. Among the main areas of the potential bilateral cooperation the topic of digital services will be discussed.

 

The Bank of Russia decides to cut the key rate by 25 bp to 7.50% p.a.

On 9 February 2018, the Bank of Russia Board of Directors decided to cut the key rate by 25 bp to 7.50% per annum. Annual inflation remains sustainably low. Inflation expectations are diminishing progressively. Short-term pro-inflationary risks have abated. Therefore the balance of inflationary and economic risks has shifted slightly towards the risks to economic growth. The uncertainty over the situation in global financial markets has increased. This year annual inflation is much less likely to exceed 4%. In this environment the Bank of Russia will continue to reduce the key rate and may complete the transition from moderately tight to neutral monetary policy in 2018.

In making its key rate decision, the Bank of Russia recognised the following factors.

Inflation dynamics. Annual inflation remained sustainably low. In January 2018 it stood at 2.2%. Permanent factors slow down consumer price growth alongside temporary factors. Furthermore, permanent factors may have stronger effect on inflation than previously estimated.

In January 2018, annual consumer price growth declined across all staple goods and services. Food inflation slowed to 0.7% while non-food inflation declined to 2.6%; service prices increased by 3.9%. According to Bank of Russia estimates, most annual inflation indicators reflecting the most sustainable price movements are below 4%.

Increased supply in the farm produce market continued to exert downward pressure on food inflation. Most factors associated with the 2017 harvest will cease to have a disinflationary influence in the first half of 2018. At the same time, investment in agriculture and the sector’s technological advancement pave the way for a sustainable increase in its production capacity in the medium term. The contribution of the exchange rate dynamics of the latest months to annual inflation slowdown will be exhausted by the end of the first quarter of this year.

The slowdown of inflation was conducive to inflation expectation decline which nevertheless remains unstable and uneven. This requires both further decrease in inflation expectations and reduction in their sensitivity to price changes.

The slowdown of annual consumer price growth may continue in the first half of 2018. This partially results from last year’s high base effect of food inflation. According to the Bank of Russia’s forecast, annual inflation will remain somewhat below 4% in 2018 and will hold close to this reading in 2019.

Monetary conditions. Monetary conditions were gradually easing in 2017. Interest rate dynamics was a key contributor to easing of monetary conditions. At the same time, real interest rates remain positive promoting savings. Non-price lending conditions have been largely constraining with banks demonstrating conservative approach to screening borrowers and increasing lending on the back of elevated borrowers’ risks. A balanced recovery of lending poses no pro-inflationary risks.

The key rate decision and the potential for its decrease in the future will contribute to further easing of monetary conditions, thus creating prerequisites for inflation to approach 4% and supporting domestic demand.

In the course of transition to neutral monetary policy, the shape of the yield curve will continue to return back to normal. Given the situation, the potential for lowering short-term rates is greater than for long-term ones.

Economic activity. The fourth quarter of 2017 saw a slowdown in economic activity. However, some uncertainty remains in the assessments of the reasons behind this slowdown, also due to temporary factors.

After decline in November 2017 in December 2017, industrial output resumed monthly growth. Producer sentiment remains relatively high. It will be further supported by higher domestic demand as real wages increase and global economic growth expands. Unemployment does not generate any excessive inflationary pressure.

Inflation risks. Short-term pro-inflationary risks have abated. Therefore the balance of inflationary and economic risks has shifted slightly towards the risks to economic growth. The uncertainty over the situation in global financial markets has increased. This year annual inflation is much less likely to exceed 4%. In this environment the Bank of Russia will continue to reduce the key rate and may complete the transition from moderately tight to neutral monetary policy in 2018.

The Bank of Russia hardly revised its medium-term risk estimates for inflation.

Depending on the situation, a number of factors may cause inflation to deviate from the target both upwards and downwards. They include the dynamics of highly volatile food and oil prices. The fiscal rule will set off the impact of oil market conditions on inflation and domestic economic environment as a whole. At the same time, certain factors generate mostly pro-inflationary risks: they include the developments in the labour market, potential changes in consumer behaviour, and the nature of inflation expectations.

In the medium term (in 2019-2020) the risks of inflation’s upward deviation from 4% still prevail over deviation below 4%. First, increased structural labour shortage may cause labour productivity growth to considerably lag behind wage growth. Second, inflationary pressure may stem from changes in households’ behaviour as the propensity to save becomes much lower. Third, inflation expectations remain elevated and subject to fluctuations caused by movements in prices of certain goods and services and the exchange rate. Besides, the medium-term balance of risks for inflation dynamics will depend on potential budgetary and tariff decisions in 2019–2020.The Bank of Russia will also monitor risks posed by external factors over the entire forecast horizon.

The Bank of Russia Board of Directors will hold its next rate review meeting on 23 March 2018. The Board decision press release is to be published at 13:30 Moscow time.

 

Interest rates on the Bank of Russia operations

(% p.a.)

Purpose Type of instrument Instrument Term Rate since 18.12.17 Rate since 12.02.18
Liquidity provision Standing facilities Overnight loans; FX swaps1; Lombard loans; REPO 1 day 8.75 8.50
Loans secured by non-marketable assets or guarantees 1 day 8.75 8.50
from 2 to 549 days2 9.50 9.25
Open market operations (min bid rates) Loans secured by non-marketable assets, auctions2 3 months 8.00 7.75
FX swap auctions1 from 1 to 2 days3 7.75
(key rate)		 7.50
(key rate)
REPO auctions from 1 to 6 days3, 1 week
Liquidity absorption Open market operations (max bid rates) Deposit auctions from 1 to 6 days3, 1 week
Standing facilities Deposit operations 1 day, call 6.75 6.50
Memo item: Refinancing rate4

 

1 Interest rate on the ruble leg; interest rates on the FX leg are equal to LIBOR rates on overnight loans in respective foreign currencies.
2 Loans provided at a floating interest rate, linked to the Bank of Russia key rate.
3 Fine-tuning operations.
4 Starting from 1 January 2016 the refinancing rate was set equal to the Bank of Russia key rate set as of the respective date. Starting from 1 January 2016, the independent value of the refinancing rate will not be set.
Refinancing rate values prior to 01.06.2016
Interest rates on the Bank of Russia suspended operations

Source: http://cbr.ru/eng/press/keypr/

The second day of Singapore Airshow-2018

On the second day of the Singapore Airshow-2018 the Russia-Singapore Business Council organized negotiations between the leadership of the holding company Russian Helicopters (part of State Corporation Rostec), representing the Association of Aviation Manufacturers (Russia), with Mr. Sia Kheng Yok, the Executive Director of the Association of Aerospace Industries (Singapore), which consists of 34 companies, including H3 Dynamics, Field International, BSB Aviation, Aviation Learn and others. During the meeting the priority areas for cooperation were identified and, more specifically, – the establishment of service centers for aircraft maintenance and training centers for technical specialists in South-East Asia, as well as the certification of Russian technologies in Singapore and neighboring countries. In addition, the members of the Singapore Association were invited to take part in the SPIEF-2018 (May, St. Petersburg), Eastern Economic Forum-2018 (September, Vladivostok), held by the Roscongress Foundation and in the third Russia-Singapore Business Dialogue (April, Singapore), organized by Russia-Singapore Business Council.

Background:

Russian Helicopters (part of State Corporation Rostec) is one of the global leaders in helicopter production and the only helicopter design and production powerhouse in Russia. Russian Helicopters was founded in 2007 and is headquartered in Moscow. The company comprises five helicopter production facilities, two design bureaus, a spare parts production and repair facility, as well as an aftersale service branch responsible for maintenance and repair in Russia and all over the world. Among Russian Helicopters customers – Russian ministries and state authorities (Ministry of Defence, Ministry of Internal Affairs, Emergency Control Ministry), operators (Gazpromavia, UTair), major Russian and foreign corporations. In 2016 Russian Helicopters IFRS revenues reached RUB 214.3 billion. Deliveries reached 189 helicopters. General Director – Andrey Boginsky.

State Corporation Rostec is a Russian corporation founded in 2007 for the purpose of promoting the development, production and export of hi-tech civilian and military industry products. It comprises 700 organisations, nine of which have now been formed as holding companies of the military-industrial complex, six of them are involved in civil industries and 32 are directly controlled. Rostec’s portfolio includes recognised brands such as Avtovaz, Kamaz, Kalashnikov Concern, Russian Helicopters, and VSMPO-AVISMA. Rostec’s organisations are located in 60 constituent entities of the Russian Federation and supply their products to the markets of more than 70 countries. The revenue of Rostec in 2016 the consolidated revenue of Rostec reached RUB 1.266 trillion, while consolidated net income and EBITDA amounted to RUB 88 and 268 billion. In 2016 average salaries within the Corporation amounted to RUB 44 thousand. According to the new Rostec strategy, the new main goal of the Corporation is to facilitate technological advantage of Russia at highly competitive international markets. Planned volume of investments into development until 2025 is RUB 4.3 trillion. General Director – Mr. Sergey Chemezov.

Association of Aviation Manufacturers (Russia) is an autonomous non-profit organization, established in 2007, to promote the development, production and sale of Russian aviation products. The prime objectives of the organization include the representation of interests of aircraft manufacturers in Russia and abroad. Chairman – Mr. Anatoly Serdyukov.

Association of the Aerospace Industry (Singapore) is a not-for-profit organization, established in 2003, to promote the development of Singapore as a leading aerospace hub. The President – Mr. Philip Quek.

 

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Participation of the Russian delegation in Singapore Airshow 2018

The first day of Singapore Airshow 2018 – one of the largest event of its kind in Asia, which, among others, was attended by more than 70 representatives of the Russian aerospace industry – has passed. In the framework of the airshow Russia-Singapore Business Council together with the Centre for foreign promotion of high-tech products and presentation of investment projects in Singapore (Progression Pte. Ltd.) organized a business program for Russian companies.

In particular, a working meeting of the head of Russian Helicopters holding company (part of the State Corporation Rostec) Mr. Andrey Boginsky and the Ambassador of the Russian Federation to the Republic of Singapore Mr. Andrey Tatarinov was held for the purpose to discuss the presence of Russian aviation companies in South-East Asia. The meeting was also attended by Deputy General Director of Russian Helicopters Mr. Alexander Scherbinin, Trade Representative of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Singapore Mr. Alexey Dakhnovsky, Director of the State Corporation Rostec for international cooperation and regional policy Mr. Victor Kladov, Deputy Chairman of Russia-Singapore Business Council Mr. Sergey Pronin and the representatives of the Russian State Transport Leasing company.

Mr. Andrey Boginsky expressed the interest in entry into the markets of South-East Asia and highlighted the key tasks that are needed to solve in the short term. He placed emphasis on the necessity to establish close cooperation with national certification bodies, set up in the region a required infrastructure for sales, services, training and education of specialists, as well as underlined the reasonability of participation in international technology projects and industrial cooperation in the sphere of additive technologies and modern materials application, along with the benefits of active usage of financial instruments and technological resources of regional partners.

The Ambassador and the Trade Representative of the Russian Federation to Singapore expressed their readiness to provide overall support in the issue of expanding the presence of Russian aviation in the region.

The Russia-Singapore Business Council within the framework of the airshow organized meetings with representatives of national regulators, leading regional service and technology companies and financial institutions.

The talks on regional infrastructure for sales and operations of Russian helicopters with partners from India, Thailand and Myanmar were held at the Russian Helicopters stand. In particular, the issues of cooperation with the management of Indian company Aryan Aviation Pvt. Ltd. were discussed in detail. The subject of negotiations was the creation of a joint center for aviation specialists training using modern simulators.

On the initiative of Cambodian side the Russia-Singapore Business Council representatives held a meeting with the General Director of Information Satellite Systems – Reshetnev Company Mr. Nikolay Testoyedov on cooperation in the sphere of creation of a modern communication infrastructure in the Kingdom of Cambodia with possible participation of private investors from Singapore. The possible options for the implementation of this project, as well as technical proposals for the development of modern services have already been presented to Cambodian side. ISS – Reshetnev Company has experience in implementing similar projects around the world and considers Cambodia as a site for a pilot project in the South-East Asia. Moreover, a pool of similar projects was presented to ST Engineering. Their relevance for Singapore involves the increased interest in the sphere of development of satellite systems and the use of orbital resources for the development of other high-tech areas of the economy.

Within the airshow representatives of the Russia-Singapore Business Council and a Singapore-based Center for foreign promotion met with Deputy Director of Advanced Remanufacturing and Technology Centre of A*STAR Dr. Alastair Johnson. The opportunities of Russian companies to create research and engineering centers in Singapore in the sphere of additive technologies, composite materials, application of digital production technologies were negotiated.

The Center for foreign promotion also held negotiations with the Civil Aviation Authority of Singapore on the topic of certification of Russian aviation equipment in Singapore. The parties expressed mutual interest in prompt resolution of the issue.

Furthermore, during the airshow the experts of Russia-Singapore Business Council presented to exhibitors a number of companies, such as YSAR+, Technopark Kalibr, Azimut, NEVZ-Ceramics, Shvabe, Technodinamika, ONIIP, SIBER, KRET, RT-Chemcomposite and others, which were participating remotely in the business mission.

The instruments of information and service e-trading platform RSTrade www.rstradehouse.com also were presented there. Such companies as IHSE GmbH Asia Pacific Pte Ltd, BSB Aviation LLP Singapore, Liebherr-Singapore Pte Ltd, ACP Metal Finishing Pte Ltd Aerospace Supplies Pte Ltd, Aerospace Component Engineering Services Pte ltd, LYK Aerospace (S) Pte Ltd and others have shown a specific interest regarding the service of automation of contract manufacturing and the possibility of creation of joint international projects in the aerospace industry.

Background information:

Singapore Airshow is a biennial aerospace event held in Singapore starting from 2008. High-level government and military delegations, as well as senior corporate executives around the world attend the Singapore Airshow to forge partnerships and seal deals in this region.

State Corporation Rostec is the largest Russian industrial corporation established in 2007 to further the development, production and export of high-tech industrial products, including 14 holding companies and 700 enterprises. The Rostec companies are located in the territory of 60 subjects of the Russian Federation and supply products to the markets of more than 70 countries. The annual revenue in 2016 amounted to 1.266 trillion rubles. General Director – Mr. Sergey Chemezov.

Russian Helicopters is one of the global leaders in the helicopter industry, the only developer and manufacturer of helicopters in Russia, and one of the few companies in the world that have the capabilities to design, manufacture, test and maintain modern civil and military helicopters. Holding company Russian Helicopters is a part of the State Corporation Rostec. General Director – Mr. Andrey Boginsky.

SIBER is a holding company of the State Corporation Rostec in the sphere of security technologies. Provision of a complete range of necessary security services to companies within the Rostec is the key task for SIBER. Following the Development Strategy 2020, approved by Rostec, SIBER will focus on introducing innovative security products and services, as well as on establishing new joint ventures and reaching significant increase in number of customers. General Director – Mr. Vladimir Kapysh.

ISS – Reshetnev Company is a leading Russian provider of satellites for a wide range of applications: communications, television broadcasting, data-relay, navigation and geodesy. Throughout its 55 years, the company has designed and built more than 1 200 satellites, commissioned into service over 40 space-based systems and complexes. General Director – Mr. Nikolay Testoyedov.

Russia-Singapore Business Council was established in 2009 by the Chamber of Commerce and Industry of the Russian Federation under support of the Ministry of Economic Development of the Russian Federation and Rostec Corporation, in order to promote the growth of non-commodity turnover between Russia and Singapore. Chairman – Mr. Nikolay Volobuev.

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MI-171A2 passes cold weather testing at -50C

Holding company “Russian Helicopters” (part of the State Corporation Rostec) confirmed the possibility of operation of the newest multi-purpose helicopters Mi-171A2 in difficult climatic conditions at ambient temperatures up to -50 ° С. Based on the results of the tests conducted in Yakutia, the operability of the main systems and airborne equipment has been proved.

Two Mi-171A2 helicopters designed by the Mil Moscow Helicopter Plant performed 8 ground races (for the operation of engines without detachment from the ground) and 36 flights on special programs. Despite of the fact that the air temperature dropped to -60 ° C, all systems and on-board equipment of helicopters worked properly, confirming the possibility of reliable operation of the Mi-171A2 in the harshest climatic conditions.

“The helicopters of the Mi-8/17 family deserve the reputation of unpretentious and efficient machines that are not afraid of harsh conditions. Therefore, the confirmation of the possibility of using the Mi-171A2 at ultra-low temperatures was quite expected.Only I want to thank the pilots and engineers who with honor withstood the harsh frosts and in the shortest time fulfilled the test program, “- said Andrei Boginsky, the general director of the holding company ”Russian Helicopters“.

The specialists of GosNII GA, participating in the tests, especially noted the short preparation time for the Mi-171A2 for flight, the convenience of maintenance, flight and ground operation of the new helicopter, the reliable operation of the digital flight control and navigation system, the digital control and control system of the power plant regimes, and the technical condition diagnostics system. Obtained all the necessary objective data and documents for further certification and additional certification of the Mi-171A2 helicopter for a number of requirements of the certification category “A”.

“The Mi-171A2 is one of the most anticipated Russian helicopter engines, and the first four helicopters are scheduled for delivery this year, and I expect that the order book for this car will grow in the near future.” There is interest in the helicopter both in Russia and abroad” , – said the Minister of Industry and Trade of the Russian Federation Denis Manturov.

The multi-purpose helicopter Mi-171A2 is one of the most anticipated novelties of the Russian helicopter industry, the result of the profound modernization of the Mi-8/17 helicopters. More than 80 changes were made to the design of the Mi-171A2. The helicopter is equipped with engines VK-2500PS-03 (civil version of engines mounted on combat helicopters Mi-28) with digital control system. One of the most important differences between the Mi-171A2 and the helicopters of the Mi-8/17 family is a new carrier system. The helicopter has a more efficient X-shaped steering screw and a new rotor with integral composite blades of improved aerodynamic configuration. Thus, only due to aerodynamics, the propensity of the Mi-171A2 rotor increased by more than 700 kg, which had a positive effect on the entire range of flight performance.

In August 2017, the helicopter received a Type A certificate from the Federal Air Transport Agency of the Russian Federation providing for the fulfillment of the most stringent safety requirements for civilian helicopters.

Source: http://helihub.com/2018/01/24/mi-171a2-passes-cold-weather-testing-at-50c/

Russian Helicopters held negotiations with Singapore Cooperation Enterprise (SCE)

On 5 February, 2018 in course of the business program of Russia-Singapore Business Council the negotiations were held between the management of Russian Helicopters holding company (part of Rostec State Corporation) and Singapore government agency Singapore Cooperation Enterprise (SCE) which is responsible for international cooperation at the governmental level. The negotiations were organized by the Centre for foreign promotion of high-tech companies and presentation of investment projects created with the support of the Council on the basis of Singapore company Progression Pte. Ltd. Deputy Director of SCE presented the opportunities to the Russian side that could be provided by Singapore to the Russian aviation companies. During the negotiations potential partners for Russian Helicopters in Singapore were defined. The representatives of the Rostec State Corporation and the Trade Representation of the Russian Federation in the Republic of Singapore also took part in the meeting.

 

* Singapore Cooperation Enterprise was founded in 2006 by the ministries of foreign affairs, trade and industry of Singapore for the purposes of dynamic development of relations with other countries.