Tourism and the Services Sector Growth in Singapore

Within the context of a trivariate vector autoregressive framework that includes the degree of services sector openness, this article examines the link between tourism growth and services sector growth in Singapore. Empirical analysis based on Johansen's cointegration approach shows that the three variables are cointegrated (i.e., a stable long-run relationship exists among tourism growth, the degree of openness of the service sector, and services sector growth). The services and manufacturing sectors are regarded as the twin engines of Singapore's economic growth. It can be argued that tourism growth contributes to economic growth in Singapore through its impact on the services sector.