Singapore’s economy grew by 4.4% y-o-y in the 3Q2022, according to flash estimates released by the Ministry of Trade and Industry (MTI) on the morning of Oct 14.
This surpassed economists’ expectations of a 3.9% growth according to the Monetary Authority of Singapore’s (MAS) September survey of professional forecasters in September.
On a q-o-q seasonally adjusted basis, the economy expanded by 1.5%, which marks a turnaround from the 0.2% contraction in the quarter before. Singapore’s overall GDP in the 2Q2022 expanded by 4.5%, a change from the previous reading of 4.4%.
In August, the MTI changed its 2022 GDP growth forecast to a narrower and lower range from 3–5% to 3-4%.
Under goods producing industries, the manufacturing sector expanded by 1.5% y-o-y, slower than the 5.7% y-o-y growth in the previous quarter. The growth was supported by output expansions in the transport engineering, general manufacturing and precision engineering clusters and offset by output declines in the electronics and chemicals clusters. On a q-o-q seasonally adjusted basis, however, the sector contracted by 3.3%, reversing from the 0.4% q-o-q growth in the previous sector.
The construction sector grew by 7.8% y-o-y in the 3Q2022, extending the 4.8% y-o-y growth seen in the previous quarter. This was thanks to a pickup in output in both public and private construction in the 3Q2022, supported partly by the easing of border restrictions on the inflow of migrant workers.
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In absolute terms, the value-added of the sector remained 18.0% below its pre-pandemic level in 3Q2019. On a q-o-q seasonally-adjusted basis, the sector posted growth of 3.9%, improving from the 1.5% growth in the 2Q2022.
In the services sectors, wholesale & retail trade and transportation & storage sectors collectively expanded by 6.2% y-o-y in the 3Q2022, faster than the 2.9% growth in the previous quarter. This was thanks to expansions across the board.
Growth in the wholesale trade sector was mainly driven by the machinery, equipment & supplies segment on the back of the “resilient performance” of Singapore’s non-oil export volumes. At the same time, growth in the retail trade and transportation & storage sectors was partly due to the low base effects in the year before. On a q-o-q seasonally-adjusted basis, the wholesale & retail trade and transportation & storage sectors as a whole grew by 4.2%, rebounding from the 1.9% contraction in the preceding quarter.
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The group of sectors comprising the information & communications, finance & insurance and professional services sectors expanded by 4.0% y-o-y, extending the 4.7% growth seen in the previous quarter, with all sectors posting growths in the 3Q2022. In particular, growth in the professional services sector was supported by the architectural & engineering, technical testing & analysis segment, while growth in the information & communications sector continued to be driven by strong demand for IT and digital solutions. On a q-o-q seasonally-adjusted basis, the sectors in the group grew by 1.7%, improving from the 0.9% growth in the previous quarter.
Finally, the group of services sectors, which includes the accommodation & food services, real estate, administrative & support services and other services sectors, grew by 9.2% y-o-y in the 3Q2022, extending the 7.6% growth in the quarter before.
The growth was thanks to output expansions in most sectors within the group on the back of the lifting of domestic and border restrictions. Growth in the food services sector in particular was bolstered by the low base effect from the year before. According to MTI, the value-added of the sectors remain 2.2% lower than its pre-pandemic level. On a q-o-q seasonally-adjusted basis, the sectors grew by 1.8% as a whole, up from the previous quarter’s 1.3% expansion.
