Singapore Non-Oil Domestic Exports Slump More Than Expected

By Amanda Lee

Singapore's non-oil domestic exports slumped in March, sliding more than expected and continuing a bumpy start to the year.

Non-oil domestic exports from the Southeast Asian trading hub slid 20.7% from a year earlier last month, Enterprise Singapore said Wednesday. Shipments of non-electronics contributed largely to the decline.

March exports had been expected to fall in part due to unfavorable base effects, but the result was markedly worse than the median estimate of seven economists surveyed by The Wall Street Journal, who had tipped an 8.0% drop. The result is also down sharply from a revised 0.2% decline in February.

Analysts will be looking to the data for insight into the city-state's economic prospects after initial estimates signaled soft growth in the first quarter of the year.

Along with industrial production figures for March, the trade print will give an indication of final gross domestic product numbers for the first quarter, Moody's Analytics economists said. The third month of a quarter can swing initial GDP estimates, which are based on data from the first two months of the period, they said in a note.

Exports in the key electronics category declined 9.4% on year in March, reversing from 5.2% growth the prior month.

Non-electronics exports dropped by 23.2% on year in the third month of the year, accelerating from the revised 1.7% contraction seen in February.

Among the main contributors to March's fall in non-electronics domestic exports were pharmaceuticals, which slumped 70.3% on year, Enterprise Singapore said. Shipments of structures of ships and boats plunged 99.8% and non-monetary gold fell 49.1%.

On a month-on-month seasonally adjusted basis, non-oil domestic exports fell 8.4% in March. That compared with February's 4.8% drop.

 
Non-Oil Domestic Exports to Top Markets (% Y/Y) 
 
Top Market    February   March 
China             -0.1    11.9 
U.S.              17.1   -50.2 
Hong Kong        141.9    16.5 
Malaysia           -13   -11.2 
South Korea       -1.9   -12.6 
Indonesia           +8   -10.3 
Thailand          -7.7   -12.8 
Japan            -37.2   -36.5 
Taiwan             -16      +2 
EU 27             -7.3   -45.4 
 

Write to Amanda Lee at [e-mail]

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04-16-24 2047ET