SINGAPORE: Singapore's key exports in February increased 23

SINGAPORE: Singapore's key exports in February increased 23 percent from a year ago thanks to stronger demand for key electronics products and pharmaceuticals, the government said Monday.

The jump in non-oil domestic exports (NODX) -- a key barometer of the export-dependent economy's health -- to S$7.75 billion (US$4.43 billion) was an improvement on the revised 18.3 percent expansion posted in January, International Enterprise Singapore said.

But on a month-on-month seasonally adjusted basis, NODX fell 9.2 percent in February, the trade promotion agency said.

Total trade in February amounted to S$33.6 billion, up 14.6 percent from a year ago.

Electronics exports, which make up more than half of Singapore's NODX, grew 10.3 percent in February to S$4.11 billion as robust demand for integrated circuits (ICs) helped to offset slumps in disk drives and personal computer-related components. -- AFP

KL manufacturing sales up 8.4%

KUALA LUMPUR: Malaysia's manufacturing sales in January 2003 rose 8.4 percent year-on-year, official figures showed Monday.

Sales in manufacturing, the main driver of the Malaysian economy, jumped to 25.9 billion ringgit (US$6.8 billion) from 23.9 billion ringgit in January 2002, the Statistics Department said in a statement.

The manufacturing sector makes up a third of Malaysia's gross domestic product.

The department said a total of 972,290 people were employed in the manufacturing sector during January, up 1.6 percent year-on- year and 0.2 percent higher than December.

Total paid salaries and wages of 1.6 billion ringgit was 8.1 percent higher year-on year but 3.0 percent lower month-on-month, it added. -- AFP

RP jobless rate rises to 10.6%

MANILA: The Philippines' jobless rate rose to 10.6 percent in January, up 0.3 percentage points from both a year earlier and the previous quarter, the National Statistics Office said Monday.

The total workforce was 33.68 million people, up 1.8 percent from the previous year.

Employment in agriculture rose 1.3 percent from a year earlier to 11.1 million, while industrial employment fell by 0.8 percent to 4.56 million and services sector jobs grew by 2.2 percent to 14.4 million.

Aside from the 3.56 million that were unemployed, some 4.85 million workers or 16.1 percent of the total were underemployed. -- AFP

S'pore buys stake in Paris building

SINGAPORE: A unit of the Government of Singapore Investment Corp., said Monday it has acquired a 50 percent interest in a prime office building in Paris' central business district.

GIC Real Estate said the seller, a real estate investment fund of the AXA Group, will keep a 50 percent interest in the property, 6-8 Boulevard Haussmann, a nine-storey building with a net area of 25,000 square metres.

The financial details of the deal were not disclosed.

AXA Real Estate Investment Managers has been appointed as asset manager of the property.

The GIC manages Singapore's foreign reserves. GIC Real Estate has a multibillion-dollar portfolio of direct and indirect property investments worldwide. -- AFP