Illustrative image (Photo: The Star) Singapore (VNA) – Private sector economists expect Singapore's economy to weaken further in the third quarter with a gross domestic product growth forecast of 1%, according to the quarterly survey by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) released on September 6.
Regarding key indicators, non-oil domestic exports (Nodx) posted the sharpest decline and are expected to fall by 10.5% in the third quarter while the manufacturing sector, which accounts for more than a fifth of the Singapore economy, is forecast to post a 4.4% year-on-year decrease.
The decline is attributed to a decrease in external demand, especially for electronics - the semiconductor industry in particular.
The survey expects finance and insurance to record a much smaller growth of 0.7 % year-on-year due to the dual challenges of a high-interest rate environment and weak loan demand.
Wholesale and retail trade is forecast to edge higher to 1.3% year-on-year from 0.8%, and accommodation and food services dip to 8.8% after peaking at 10% in the second quarter.
These sectors are forecast to decline further as the boost from the reopening of the economy is fading.
For 2024, the economic forecast remained unchanged at 2.5%, given the potentially lower base of comparison with 2023./.
