Singapore is the largest U.S. trading partner within ASEAN, and is the largest destination within the ten-country grouping for U.S. direct investment. Singapore is the tenth largest U.S. export market worldwide. With a population of four million, Singapore purchases one and a half times more U.S. exports than China, four times more than India, and more than most European markets, including Italy, Switzerland, and Spain. At the end of 1999, U.S. direct investment in Singapore stood at more than US$24 billion, primarily in high-tech manufacturing and services industries.
Beyond the dire…