Singapore's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) slipped to 49.6 in June, down 0.3 point from the previous month. (Photo: AFP) Hanoi (VNA) – Singapore’s manufacturinggrowth slowed again in June 2019, according to the Singapore Institute ofPurchasing and Materials Management (SIPMM).
The sector also saw a decline in May 2019, thefirst time in more than two and half year.
Singapore's Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI), akey barometer of activity in the manufacturing industry, slipped to 49.6 inJune, down 0.3 point from the previous month.
The electronics sector PMI shrank for an eighthconsecutive quarter, coming in at 49.2, which is 0.2 point lower than theprevious month.
The weaker reading for manufacturing was due tofirst-time contractions in new orders, factory output, inventory and employmentlevel, the SIPMM said in a statement on July 3.
Maybank Kim Eng economist Chua Hak Bin saidPMI new orders are "leading indicators", and the contraction"suggests that the downturn will persist into the third quarter".
He forecast that the gross domestic product(GDP) growth of Singapore in 2019 will be at 1.3 percent, below theGovernment's current full-year GDP forecast of 1.5 percent to 2.5 percent.-VNA