Singapore’s monetary chief says era of cheap money and energy is over

FILE PHOTO: The logo of the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) is pictured at its building in Singapore in this February 21, 2013 file photo. REUTERS/Edgar Su/File Photo

SINGAPORE, Aug 27 (Bloomberg): Singapore’s central bank chief said that global interest rates are unlikely to return to near zero, joining a chorus of policymakers signaling that inflation is likely to remain high while monetary policy tightening will continue.

"The era of cheap money, cheap labor and cheap energy is over,” said Ravi Menon, managing director of the Monetary Authority of Singapore, in a speech at the Institute of Policy Studies on Tuesday. "Interest rates are not going back to the zero lower bound that we have seen in the last two decades.”