Singapore output up 2.5 pc in June: govt
Singapore's manufacturing output rose 2.5 pc in June compared with the same month last year.
By Agencies |
SINGAPORE: Singapore's manufacturing output rose 2.5 percent in June compared with the same month last year, the government said on Friday, but the increase was lower than analysts forecast.
A poll of economists by Dow Jones Newswires had tipped a gain of 3.1 per cent.
On a seasonally adjusted month-on-month basis, production increased 4.5 per cent from May, the Economic Development Board (EDB) said, adding that cumulative output for the first half of the year grew 3.6 percent from 2007.
According to preliminary government data, biomedical manufacturing grew 4.0 per cent in June, with the volatile pharmaceuticals segment up 5.7 per cent year-on-year after falls in the previous two months.
Transport engineering grew by 8.0 per cent overall, with the marine and offshore engineering segment up 12.6 per cent due to more ship building and repairs, the EDB said.
Electronics output grew 2.7 per cent overall despite a drop of 15.8 per cent in the information and communications and consumer electronics segment, it said.
Chemicals grew by 1.5 per cent in June although petrochemicals fell 1.1 per cent while several planned maintenance shutdowns occurred, EDB said.
Food, beverage and other general manufacturing industries grew 0.6 per cent compared with the same month last year while precision engineering was the only sector in which output fell down 2.8 per cent for the month, the data showed.
Alvin Liew, a Singapore-based economist with Standard Chartered Bank, said the positive output performance could be short-lived.
"We were expecting pharmaceuticals to rebound, but a slower demand from US and European economies will continue to weigh on overall manufacturing sector," Liew told Dow Jones Newswires.
Singapore's monthly manufacturing report is widely monitored as the sector accounts for about a quarter of the city state's gross domestic product, which totalled 243 billion Singapore dollars (178 billion US) in 2007.
Southeast Asia's most advanced economy expanded at its weakest pace in five years during the quarter ended in June, reflecting wider concerns Singapore's open economy is getting bruised by a global slowdown.
The 1.9 per cent second-quarter growth marked an easing from the 6.9 per cent expansion recorded in the previous three months, the government said.
A poll of economists by Dow Jones Newswires had tipped a gain of 3.1 per cent.
On a seasonally adjusted month-on-month basis, production increased 4.5 per cent from May, the Economic Development Board (EDB) said, adding that cumulative output for the first half of the year grew 3.6 percent from 2007.
According to preliminary government data, biomedical manufacturing grew 4.0 per cent in June, with the volatile pharmaceuticals segment up 5.7 per cent year-on-year after falls in the previous two months.
Transport engineering grew by 8.0 per cent overall, with the marine and offshore engineering segment up 12.6 per cent due to more ship building and repairs, the EDB said.
Electronics output grew 2.7 per cent overall despite a drop of 15.8 per cent in the information and communications and consumer electronics segment, it said.
ADVERTISEMENT
Chemicals grew by 1.5 per cent in June although petrochemicals fell 1.1 per cent while several planned maintenance shutdowns occurred, EDB said.
Food, beverage and other general manufacturing industries grew 0.6 per cent compared with the same month last year while precision engineering was the only sector in which output fell down 2.8 per cent for the month, the data showed.
Alvin Liew, a Singapore-based economist with Standard Chartered Bank, said the positive output performance could be short-lived.
"We were expecting pharmaceuticals to rebound, but a slower demand from US and European economies will continue to weigh on overall manufacturing sector," Liew told Dow Jones Newswires.
ADVERTISEMENT
Singapore's monthly manufacturing report is widely monitored as the sector accounts for about a quarter of the city state's gross domestic product, which totalled 243 billion Singapore dollars (178 billion US) in 2007.
Southeast Asia's most advanced economy expanded at its weakest pace in five years during the quarter ended in June, reflecting wider concerns Singapore's open economy is getting bruised by a global slowdown.
ADVERTISEMENT
The 1.9 per cent second-quarter growth marked an easing from the 6.9 per cent expansion recorded in the previous three months, the government said.
Download
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
The Economic Times Business News App for the Latest News in Business, Sensex, Stock Market Updates & More.
Download
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
The Economic Times News App for Quarterly Results, Latest News in ITR, Business, Share Market, Live Sensex News & More.
ADVERTISEMENT
