Wednesday January 02, 2008

Singapore economy shrinks first time since 2003

This article belongs to the Singapore stagflation watch story arc.

guardian.co.uk :

Singapore's trade-driven economy shrank for the first time since 2003 in the fourth quarter as weak manufacturing dragged on growth and momentum is expected to weaken further in 2008. The city-state's economy, which relies heavily on exports, contracted at an annualised, seasonally adjusted rate of 3.2% in the fourth quarter, below a revised 4.4% expansion in the third-quarter and the weakest performance since the second quarter 2003.

"It's very clear that we are no more a fairy-tale economy. Inflation is back, growth is slowing down and the labour market is very tight. These are going to be testing times," said Chua Hak Bin, economist at Citigroup in Singapore. Economies across Asia, many of which are heavily reliant on exports, are bracing for a slowdown in 2008 as a housing downturn takes its toll on the giant U.S. economy.

- From the source, the Ministry of Trade and Industry, "Advance GDP Estimates for Fourth Quarter 2007" :

app.mti.gov.sg :

On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally adjusted annualised basis, real GDP fell by 3.2 per cent, compared with 4.4 per cent gain a quarter earlier, reflecting a slowdown in the manufacturing sector.

See also :

1. Singapore GDP unexpectedly shrinks on weaker output

(2008-01-02 19:38:40 SGT) [Biz] Permalink

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