(May 9): Singapore must be realistic about the global trends affecting its equities market and what can be done about them, according to Deputy Prime Minister Lawrence Wong.

It’s still challenging for Singapore to attract listings, Wong said in response to a parliamentary question on Wednesday. However, he said that stock exchanges in places like the UK and Hong Kong have the same issue.

“Strong-growth companies backed by private equity and venture capital have the option to remain private for longer in the high-for-longer interest rate environment,” said Wong, who is also minister for finance.

Companies that go public tend to “gravitate” to the US due to its deep and liquid capital market and investor base, Wong said. The government will continue to encourage Singapore-incubated companies to list in the city-state, he added.

Singapore is studying proposals to revive its stock market amid a widening gap in the local bourse’s performance with regional peers, the Financial Times reported recently.