SINGAPORE: Singapore’s on-year export growth beat expectations in March, thanks to a surge in petrochemical and pharmaceutical shipments, a sign the city-state’s trade recovery is widening to non-electronic sectors.
Non-oil domestic exports (NODX) in March rose a more-than-expected 16.5 percent from a year earlier, data from trade agency International Enterprise Singapore showed on Monday.
From the previous month, exports fell a seasonally-adjusted 1.1 percent, a smaller-than-expected decline.
A poll had forecast March exports would expand 10.4 percent from a year earlier and shrink 6.4 percent from February.
“We are still comfortable with the current positive trajectory in terms of exports but a lot is price-based effects so we will have a better sense in the second half of the year,” said Standard Chartered economist Edward Lee.
Petrochemical and pharmaceutical exports surged in March on-year, growing 42.8 percent and 17.7 percent respectively.
Singapore’s electronic exports grew 5.2 percent from a year ago, but at a more moderate pace compared to the 17.2 percent growth in February.
Singapore has been among a number of export-reliant Asian economies to benefit from a general uptick in global demand in recent months, with the city-state enjoying strong sales of its tech products.
Analysts say that March numbers mitigate fears that Singapore’s strong export numbers are mostly dependent on the electronics sector.
“It is not such a narrow base anymore because non-electronics also performed,” said Selena Ling, head of treasury research and strategy for OCBC Bank.
This comes after Singapore’s exports in February rose the at their fastest on-year pace since February 2012, when they jumped 32.2 percent, Thomson data showed, fuelled by demand for the city state’s tech products and a sharp jump in shipments to China.
The city-state’s electronics sector has been key in driving the stellar growth in exports over the last few months, helping the trade-dependent economy avert a recession.
