SINGAPORE: Singapore's economy contracted by 1.1 percent on a quarter-on-quarter basis in the second quarter of 2012, compared to the 9.4 percent expansion in the preceding quarter.
On a year-on-year basis, the economy grew at a modest pace of 1.9 percent, following the 1.4 percent growth in the previous quarter.
In a statement on Friday, the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) said the weakened growth momentum in the second quarter was mainly due to a sequential contraction in the manufacturing sector.
Commenting on the sectoral decline, the MTI said the manufacturing sector declined by 6.0 percent, reversing the 20.9 percent expansion in the preceding quarter. It said the fall in biomedical manufacturing output more than offset the gains in the transport engineering cluster.
Growth in the services-producing industries remained modest, at 1.0 percent on a year-on-year basis, following the 1.9 percent growth in the previous quarter. This was mainly due to contraction in the wholesale and retail trade, as well as the finance and insurance sectors.
The MTI said business services also declined due to the slowdown in professional services related activities. However, tourism-related sectors continued to expand, though at a moderate pace.
The MTI will release the preliminary GDP estimates for the second quarter in August 2012, including performance by sectors, sources of growth, inflation, employment and productivity, in its Economic Survey of Singapore.
- CNA/de
Posted: 13 July 2012 0803 hrs
Source: Channel NewsAsia