SINGAPORE: Singapore's economic growth this year is expected to come in at 3.3 per cent, according to private-sector economists polled in a quarterly survey by the Monetary Authority of Singapore (MAS) released on Wednesday (Dec 12).
This forecast is higher than the 3.2 per cent median forecast in the previous survey.
AdvertisementThe Singapore economy expanded by 2.2 per cent in the third quarter of the year compared with the same period last year, which is marginally higher than the 2.1 per cent reported in the September survey.
The manufacturing sector is now expected to expand at a slower pace, with economists surveyed forecasting growth of 7.4 per cent, down from their 7.6 per cent growth prediction in September's survey.
The finance and insurance industry is expected to post growth of 6.9 per cent, a slight increase from the 6.7 per cent growth predicted previously.
In contrast, economists predict that the construction sector will contract by 3.5 per cent, moderating from the 4.2 per cent decline predicted in the last survey.
AdvertisementAdvertisementMeanwhile the MAS survey showed forecasts for both headline and core inflation in 2018 to be at 0.5 per cent and 1.7 per cent, respectively.
On the labour front, economists expect the unemployment rate to be at 2.1 per cent at year-end, unchanged from the previous survey.
Among the 28 economists polled, "intensification of US-China trade tensions" remained as the biggest downside risk for Singapore’s economy.
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