Singapore in the New Economic Geography: From Geographical Location to the Relocation of Economic Dynamics

International audienceSingapore in the new economic geography: From geographic location to the relocation of economic dynamics Loïs Bastide Singapore was founded as a node within the extensive network of trading routes that developed across the British Empire. The settlement's value lay in its highly strategic location between Europe/India, China and the Malay Archipelago at the most convenient crossroads for goods and merchants operating within these geographical subsystems against the background of the geopolitical interplay between the Dutch and the British in Asia. Indeed, its location was the only resource underpinning Singapore's growth (Huff 1997, 7). This early advantage of geographic location was very significant within the particular patterns of trade and geo-politics of the early 19 th century and, supplemented by free port status, facilitated Singapore's growth as a major entrepôt for trade within both the British Empire and Asia