Singapore plans for deep recession

Difficult times: A couple wearing face masks walk along a park in Singapore. Even though Singapore has so far avoided the lockdowns seen in other nations, its economy still shrank 2.2% in the first quarter from a year earlier. — AFP

SINGAPORE:- Singapore said it was planning for a deep recession due to the coronavirus pandemic as its economy suffered the worst contraction in a decade in the first quarter, reinforcing fears global activity will slump sharply this year.

Singapore is among the world’s most open economies and one of the first to report growth data since the virus spread from China earlier this year, portending more pain for other countries as they impose increasingly strict anti-virus measures.