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[SINGAPORE] Over one-third of businesses in Singapore are already hurting from the global tariff war, with almost 90 per cent expecting to feel its fallout within the next six months.

According to a Singapore Business Federation (SBF) survey of multinationals (MNCs), small-and-medium enterprise (SMEs) and large enterprises, three-quarters of businesses are staring at a revenue slide over the next six to 12 months.

Results of the poll, released on Thursday (May 22), also highlight the impact on companies’ wage, hiring and investment plans.

Hiring and wages

Three-quarters of businesses do not plan to reduce wages in the next three months, while 52 per cent of them also do not intend to hire over the same period, with SMEs being more cautious (57 per cent) compared to MNCs (33 per cent).

While some plan to pass on higher costs caused by tariffs, others hope to absorb part of it to manage customer demand. Another top measure to mitigate the tariff fallout was to step up intra-Asean business.

Three in four expect to raise prices, with 35 per cent of them planning to pass on the full additional costs to customers, while slightly over one-third intend to absorb part of the costs.

With the realignment of trade flows arising from punitive US tariffs slapped on its trading partners, nearly 80 per cent of companies are signalling a keen interest to pivot to South-east Asia.

Other key markets of diversification for businesses include Europe (39 per cent), the Middle East (38 per cent) and North Asia (31 per cent).

The SBF poll was conducted in April this year when economies and markets were convulsing from US President Donald Trump’s punitive “reciprocal” tariffs.

A total of 294 businesses across all key industries took part in the survey. Eighty-one per cent of respondents were from SMEs, with large enterprises (5 per cent) and MNCs (14 per cent) making up the rest.

Close to two-thirds of the respondents were from the wholesale trade and manufacturing sector, SBF said.

MNCs could take a larger hit from US tariffs, with 40 per cent of them engaging in direct sales and exports to the US, compared to only 24 per cent of SMEs.

For large enterprises, an equal proportion are either selling or exporting directly to the US, or not engaging with the market entirely.

Both MNCs and large enterprises are more diversified in their revenue streams, however, with 69 per cent and 71 per cent, respectively, saying that less than a quarter of their revenue comes from the US market.

Government support

Tax relief – such as tax credits and deferred tax payments – was the top choice of government support sought by three in five businesses, at 68 per cent.

Broken down, this was the top preference of SMEs (67 per cent), MNCs (74 per cent) and large enterprises (79 per cent).

Next was government financial aid such as grants, low-interest loans and subsidies, at 61 per cent.

Other types of help cited were regulatory flexibility, workforce support (including training programmes) and updates on relevant trade-related information, at 43 per cent.

Over 60 per cent of businesses said they would need updates on free trade agreements, 57 per cent sought guidance on customs procedures and regulations, and 52 per cent wanted detailed guidance on compliance and documentation requirements.