Singapore-made exports rose 1.7% in September

Singapore-made exports rose 1.7% in September

SINGAPORE (Bloomberg): Singapore-made exports, closely watched
for the health of the island's economy, unexpectedly rose 1.7
percent year-to-year in September as European orders offset
shriveled demand from recession-torn Asia.

Even so, an economic recovery isn't in sight. Electronics
exports, which account for two-thirds of Singapore-made goods,
fell 1.2 percent to S$5.85 billion (US$3.59 billion). Total
imports plunged 19 percent to S$14.07 billion.

``As in preceding months, the sluggish performance was due to
lackluster market conditions for electronics and related products
as well as fallen demand from Asian economies hit by the
financial crisis,'' the Trade Development Board said on Tuesday.

Rising sales of Singapore-made goods abroad is critical to
economic recovery in the export-driven city state. Singapore's
trade is more than three times its gross domestic product. The
economy is expected to shrink in the second half, the first
contraction since the 1985-1986 recession.

Non-oil exports rose to S$8.59 billion as sales to Europe
jumped 24 percent. This offset sharp declines to Asian markets --
a 10 percent decline for Japan, 23 percent for Hong Kong and
China, 27 percent for Thailand and 16 percent for South Korea.
Asian markets account for about 40 percent of Singapore's
exports.

Economists polled by Bloomberg had expected a 4.1 percent
decline in Singapore-made exports in September from a year
earlier.

Both stocks and currency declined on the trade report.

The benchmark Straits Times Index pared earlier gains to
1121.6 points at the midday pause in trading, a rise of just 0.18
percent from an earlier 1.8 percent gain. The Singapore dollar
fell to 1.618 a dollar, from its Asian close of 1.6155 yesterday.

With the overall ``weak trend'' in exports ``it's too
premature to proclaim a recovery,'' said Andy Tan, an economist
and general manager at MMS International, the financial services
unit of Standard & Poor's Corp.

The September non-oil trade number translates to shipment
value of US$4.98 billion based on the average exchange rate of
1.7236 to the U.S. dollar in September. That's an 11 percent
decline in dollar terms from US$5.568 billion a year ago.

The increase, though unexpected, marked a seasonal surge in
European Christmas orders. Typically, electronics companies in
Europe shut for summer holidays in July and part of August,
before increasing production in September.

Still, the increase in shipments to Europe was not matched by
demand from the U.S. Exports to the U.S. plummeted 5.1 percent to
S$2.5 billion. As exports to Europe and the U.S. make up just
over half of Singapore-made exports, sustainable orders from the
U.S. is key for the economy.