GOVERNMENT-OWNED COMPANIES (Profits and losses)
Parliament of Singapore · 26 February 1993 · 8th Parliament
Official Report, 26 February 1993, Vol 60, Issue 6 · Open in the reader (summaries, search, filters)
Encik Harun bin A. Ghani asked the Minister for Finance, since 1988, (i) what is the number of government-owned companies which have been making profits, (ii) whether that number exceeds the number of companies which have incurred losses and (iii) what is the excess of profits over losses of these companies.
Dr Richard Hu Tsu Tau: Mr Speaker, Sir, as Questions 6 and 7 are related, may I take them together?
Mr Speaker: Yes.
Dr Richard Hu Tsu Tau: Sir, Government companies are held under three group companies, namely, Temasek Holdings, MND Holdings and Singapore Technologies Holdings.
At the group level, Temasek Holdings and MND Holdings have been profitable in every year from 1988 to 1991. In the case of Singapore Technologies Holdings, it was profitable in 1988, 1989 and 1990 but suffered a loss of $91.1 million in 1991. The loss arose as a result of losses incurred by a subsidiary company, Singapore Technologies Ventures, and reasons for the loss were given in this House in response to a question from Mr Low last year.
1992 results for the three holding companies are not yet available but all the three are expected to be profitable.
On Question No. 7, the number of Government-owned companies including the three holding companies, namely, Temasek Holdings, Singapore Technologies Holdings and MND Holdings and their first tier companies which were profitable since 1988 are as follows: 1988 - 34 companies 1989 - 33 companies 1990 - 36 companies 1991 - 34 companies
These companies which lost money during those years were 6 in 1988, 7 in 1989, 7 in 1990 and 10 in 1991.
The number of profitable companies therefore exceeded the number of companies which incurred losses in each of the years from 1988 to 1990.
The excess profits over losses of these companies are as follows: 1988 - $1,215 million 1989 - $2,764 million 1990 - $2,521 million 1991 - $1,954 million
Mr Low Thia Khiang: Sir, would the Minister confirm the amount of losses of the companies which the Minister mentioned just now?
Dr Richard Hu Tsu Tau: I do not follow. Confirm what?
Mr Low Thia Khiang: Confirm the loss. You mentioned about the profits. What about the loss?
Dr Richard Hu Tsu Tau: Yes, they lost money. The number of companies which I listed did lose money.
Mr Low Thia Khiang: The Minister mentioned about the profits of the Government-owned companies. What I would like to know is what is the amount of losses of the companies which the Minister mentioned.
Dr Richard Hu Tsu Tau: The companies suffered an overall loss in 1991 of $91 million.
Mr Low Thia Khiang: What is the figure?
Dr Richard Hu Tsu Tau: Sir, I am not sure exactly what he wants.
Mr Low Thia Khiang: The figure of the losses in 1991.
Dr Richard Hu Tsu Tau: $91 million.
Source: Singapore Parliament Official Report (Hansard) for 26 February 1993. Republished on SGParliament.