Singapore's GDP grows 2.5 pct in Q1

The Singapore economy rose 2.5 percent year-on-year in the first quarter, easing from the 2.9 percent growth in the previous quarter, according to estimates released by the Ministry of Trade and Industry on Thursday.

Growth contracted by 1.9 percent on a quarter-on-quarter seasonally-adjusted annualized basis, after a strong rebound of 12.3 percent in the preceding quarter.

The manufacturing sector expanded 6.6 percent year-on-year in the first quarter, lower than the 11.5 percent growth in the previous quarter. The sector was primarily supported by robust output expansions in the electronics and precision engineering clusters.

On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally-adjusted annualized basis, the sector slumped 6.6 percent following the 39.8 percent surge in the preceding quarter.

The services producing industries rose 1.5 percent, an improvement from the 1.0 percent growth in the previous quarter. Growth was supported mainly by the wholesale & retail trade and transportation & storage sectors. On a quarter-on-quarter basis, the services producing industries decreased at an annualized rate of 2.2 percent, a reversal from the 8.4 percent expansion in the preceding quarter.

The construction sector shrank 1.1 percent in the first quarter, extending the 2.8 percent decline in the previous quarter. The sector was weighed down by a slowdown in private sector construction activities. On a quarter-on-quarter seasonally-adjusted annualized basis, the sector grew 5.4 percent, accelerating from 0.8 percent in the preceding quarter.

The ministry said it will release the preliminary GDP estimates for the January-March period, including performance by sectors, sources of growth, inflation, employment and productivity, in its Economic Survey of Singapore in May. Endit