©Reuters.
Investing.com — Singapore’s major non-oil exports rebounded strongly in January due to some improvement in demand in China and Southeast Asia, as well as lower comparative standards compared to last year and the previous month.
Official data on Friday showed that sales rose 16.8% in January compared to the same month last year, the fastest pace of growth in two years. This figure exceeded expectations for a 5.4% increase and a 1.5% decline in the previous month.
On a month-on-month basis, the economy rose 2.3%, beating expectations for 0.5% growth and improving from December’s 1.7% contraction.
January’s figures show some relief for Singapore’s trade-dependent economy, which had suffered from a severe decline in overseas demand for exports. Non-oil exports have been weak in 14 of the past 16 months, hit particularly hard by weak demand from China.
Electronics, especially integrated circuits, industrial machinery, and refined petroleum products are the country’s largest exports. Weak global technology demand and weak capital investment also hurt the country’s exports over the past year.
Data on Thursday showed Singapore’s fourth-quarter growth rate was 2.2% annually. However, China has largely avoided a recession in 2023, benefiting from a recovery in tourism after China lifted coronavirus-era travel restrictions.