Initially, the Singapore dollar was pegged to the pound sterling at a rate of two shillings and four pence to the dollar, or S$60 = £7, working out to 8.57 dollars to the pound sterling. This peg lasted until the demise of the Sterling Area due to the Nixon Shock in the early 1970s, after which the Singaporean dollar was linked to the US dollar for a short time. As Singapore's economy grew and its trade links diversified to many other countries and regions, Singapore moved towards pegging its currency against a fixed and undisclosed trade-weighted basket of currencies from 1973 to 1985.