$4 back on every $50 spent, cards that rewrite their own rewards each month, and a survey that says Singaporeans are feeling more upbeat than their neighbours—just not about the one thing that matters most. This week, FairPrice is bringing back a fan-favourite freebie for a limited window, DBS wants Gen Z to stop picking cashback categories altogether, and a fresh regional study digs into how confident Singaporeans really feel about the future. Oh, and our exporters just blew past everyone's forecasts. Here's everything you need to know this week.
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FairPrice's $4 return vouchers are back until 27 September
FairPrice shoppers can get $4 back for every $50 spent from 17 to 27 September, as FairPrice Group brings back its FairPrice Return Vouchers for a fifth round this year.
For every $50 nett spent in a single transaction at FairPrice, FairPrice Finest, FairPrice Xtra and Unity stores during this period, shoppers get a $4 FairPrice Return Voucher, capped at four vouchers (worth $16) per transaction. The vouchers can be used at any FairPrice supermarket with no minimum spend, from the day after issuance until 14 October.
- $4 return voucher per $50 nett spend, max 4 vouchers ($16) per transaction
- Valid from 17-27 September; usable until 14 October
- No minimum spend to redeem
This isn't FairPrice Group's only cost-saving push this year—CHAS Blue and Orange cardholders now get 6% off groceries, up from 3% previously, on top of a price freeze on more than 500 daily essentials and the ongoing 12-week BestSellers for Less campaign. If you're stacking up discounts, it's worth pairing this with the right cashback card too.
ALSO READ: Best Grocery Credit Cards in Singapore 2026
- Cash Back on Groceries, Petrol & Private Commute
- Up to 8%
- Total Cash Back Cap, per month
- S$80
- at Caltex, Shell & Esso
- Up to 23.64% savings
Get S$400 Cash Reward or 6,140 SmartPoints (worth up to S$649 of Gifts) as quickly as 5 weeks —just spend S$500 within 30 days of card approval with your new Citibank Credit Card! T&Cs apply.
DBS launches Chromo and TravelLah! cards to chase Gen Z 'reward maxxing'
DBS is expanding its Gen Z card line-up with the launch of Chromo and TravelLah!, designed around how young adults spend and travel.
Launched on 5 September, the DBS Chromo Card is Singapore's first credit card that automatically adapts to a cardholder's spending each month, without needing them to pre-select categories.
- Up to 5% cashback on your top 2 local spending categories each month, 1% on the rest
- Switch between cashback and miles once a month, with no rewards lost
- Zero foreign exchange fees; annual fee waived for the first 5 years
- Past 30: 1.7% cashback or 1.3 miles per $1 on local spend, no minimum spend, no cap
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- on your top 2 local spend categories every month
- Up to 5% Cashback
- & 5-year annual fee waiver
- 0 FX Fees
- Flexibility to choose your reward preference every month
- Miles or Cashback
TravelLah!, a travel debit card open to those aged 16 and up, launched on 13 September. It uses Visa exchange rates with no DBS mark-up, charges zero ATM withdrawal fees, and lets you pay in more than 150 currencies—handy for younger customers not yet eligible for a credit card of their own.
Milieu study: Singaporeans grow more confident about the future, but cost of living stays the top worry
A new social issues study by Milieu, which surveyed 3,000 people across Singapore, Malaysia, Thailand, Indonesia, Vietnam and the Philippines, finds that only 38% of Southeast Asians believe their country is clearly improving or improving slowly on the issues that matter most.
Singapore fares a little better than the regional average—41% of Singaporeans say the country is moving in the right direction, against Malaysia's 51%, Thailand's 25%, and a regional high of 71% in Vietnam. The Philippines came in lowest, at 20%, with 62% saying things are getting worse.
Country | Moving in the right direction |
|---|---|
Vietnam | 71% |
Malaysia | 51% |
Singapore | 41% |
Thailand | 25% |
Philippines | 20% |
Cost of living remains Singapore's biggest concern, cited by 65% as a major global worry and 68% as a key national issue—both above the regional average. Job opportunities followed at 43%, while only 11% flagged government integrity, far below Thailand's 42%.
Interestingly, cost of living isn't Gen Z's top concern regionally—corruption and government accountability narrowly edges it out, 33% versus 32%.
ALSO READ: Is Living in Singapore Expensive? Here’s The Cost of Living in Singapore (2026)
Singapore's exports jump 46.2% in August, blowing past forecasts
Singapore's non-oil domestic exports (NODX) rose 46.2% in August, extending July's 24.1% expansion and blowing past economists' forecast of 35.1% in a Bloomberg poll, as AI-related demand kept electronics shipments surging.
Electronics shipments grew 131.8%, up from 112% in July, while non-electronics shipments expanded 12%, according to data Enterprise Singapore released on 17 September.
- Disk media products: +290.2%
- PCs: +237.9%
- Integrated circuits: +90.9%
- Non-monetary gold: +67%
- Specialised machinery: +57.7%
- Medical apparatus: +22.1%
NODX to the US, China and South Korea expanded in August, while shipments to the European Union contracted—extending the run of upside surprises that started with July's export growth.
That's it for this week! Stay tuned for next week's What's Happening This Week to keep up with the latest in finance, business, and beyond.
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