Singapore’s key exports fall by 15.5% in ninth consecutive month of contraction

SINGAPORE: Singapore’s non-oil domestic exports (NODX) contracted for the ninth consecutive month in June, falling by 15.5 per cent, with both electronics and non-electronics seeing a decline.

The drop follows a 14.8 per cent decrease in May and a 9.8 per cent contraction in April.

The latest figure was slightly better than a Reuters poll forecast of a 15.8 per cent drop.

According to data released by Enterprise Singapore (EnterpriseSG) on Monday (Jul 17), electronic product exports contracted by 15.9 per cent in June, following a 27.2 per cent decline in the previous month.

Integrated circuits (ICs), PCs and parts of PCs contributed the most to the decline, falling by 31.8 per cent, 44.2 per cent and 44.8 per cent respectively.

Non-electronic exports also declined by 15.4 per cent in June, following a 10.7 per cent drop in May.

The biggest declines were in petrochemicals, pharmaceuticals and primary chemicals, falling by 34 per cent, 29.5 per cent and 61.8 per cent respectively.

“NODX to the top markets as a whole declined in June 2023, though NODX to Hong Kong and China rose,” said EnterpriseSG.

NODX declined in June for key markets Malaysia (-30.7 per cent), Indonesia (-35.7 per cent) and South Korea (-24.2 per cent).

On a year-on-year basis, total trade declined by 19.2 per cent in June, following the 17.9 per cent contraction in the previous month. 

Both exports and imports fell, by 17.2 per cent and 21.4 per cent respectively.

Singapore’s economy narrowly avoided a technical recession with second quarter advance estimates showing 0.3 per cent growth on a quarter-on-quarter basis.