The global economic rebound is “fragile” and shocks could push the world toward another recession “sooner than expected,” said Tony Tan, deputy chairman of Government of Singapore Investment Corp.

“Downside risks” to the global recovery have increased due to Europe’s debt turmoil, continued deleveraging in the US and protectionist pressures, Tan said in a speech in Singapore today. GIC, manager of more than US$100 billion ($137.1 bilion) of the city-state’s foreign reserves, is the world’s sixth-largest state investment company, according to the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute in California.

 

“The economic recovery, while real, is fragile and there is a risk that negative shocks could push the global economy towards a recession sooner than expected,” Tan said.

 

Policy makers in developed economies have refrained from raising interest rates from record lows amid concern the global recovery will falter. The International Monetary Fund this month said financial-market turmoil has increased the risks to the rebound, and Moody’s Investors Service lowered its credit ratings on Portugal and Ireland.

 

“The challenge for policy makers in many developed economies will be to convince markets that they have credible plans to ensure sustainable public finances over the medium to long-term, while minimising the negative short-term impact on growth,” Tan said. “While markets have focused on Greece, Portugal, Spain, Ireland and Italy, this risk remains high for the UK, US, and Japan.”

 

US Federal Reserve Chairman Ben S. Bernanke said this week the economic outlook remains “unusually uncertain.” Developed economies will take a “long time” to recover fully from the global crisis and emerging nations such as Brazil, Russia, India and China will gain importance, Tan said today.

 

“For investors, the rise of emerging markets will mean that a larger proportion of their investments will be in these markets,” he said. “Far from being a risky and perhaps optional part of their portfolios, emerging markets will become a core and unavoidable asset class in global portfolios.”

 

GIC’s investments in stocks accounted for 38% of its portfolio in the year to March 31, 2009, while bond investments represented 24%, according to its annual report released in September. Allocations to alternative investments, including private equity, real estate and hedge funds, made up 30% of its portfolio.

 

GIC bought stakes in Citigroup Inc. and UBS AG in 2008 as the collapse in the US subprime mortgage market in 2007 froze credit markets and led to almost US$1.8 trillion in losses and writedowns at financial institutions worldwide.

 

The global financial crisis of 2008 and 2009 will likely “accelerate the shift in economic power from the developed to the emerging world,” Tan said. “Asia is at the cusp of the next stage in its development,” he said.