Singapore's non-oil exports up 10.9% in August on-year

Sep 17, 2007 - Singapore's key exports rose 10.9 percent in August on-year, boosted by increased shipments of pharmaceuticals which tempered a sustained decline in electronics, the government said on Monday.

The increase in non-oil domestic exports (NODX) for the fourth straight month was in the upper range of analysts' forecasts and double the 5.4 percent growth registered in July, the trade promotion body, International Enterprise Singapore, said.

NODX for August totalled S$15.16 billion (US$10.04 billion), IE Singapore said.

Exports of pharmaceuticals surged 105.8 percent from the same period last year to S$2.07 billion, it said.

This offset a 1.3 percent decrease in electronics exports to S$6.43 billion.

IE Singapore said it was the seventh consecutive month of decline for electronics, which is dependent on global demand.

Except for consumer electronics exports which climbed 35.6 percent, four other key electronics products posted declines, led by telecommunications equipment which fell 39.2 percent.

Shipments of disc drives dropped 26.3 percent, integrated circuits were down 5.2 percent and computer parts contracted 6.5 percent, IE Singapore said.

On a month-on-month seasonally adjusted basis, NODX expanded 2.1 percent, faster than the 0.5 percent rise in July, it said.

Total trade was up 0.7 percent to S$72.43 billion, but this was slower than the 6.2 percent expansion in July, the agency said.

Exports totalled S$38.87 billion, up 2.6 percent, while imports shrank 1.4 percent to S$33.56 billion.

NODX is a closely watched measure of the health of Singapore's trade-reliant economy, which is tipped by the government to grow between 7.0 and 8.0 percent this year after expanding 7.9 percent in 2006.