Singapore Exports Slowed in December

Singapore's key non-oil domestic exports rose slower than expected in December.

Exports of goods made in Singapore rose 3.1% from a year earlier after a 9.1% gain in November, trade promotion agency International Enterprise Singapore said Wednesday.

The median estimate of 10 economists in a poll by The Wall Street Journal expected December exports to expand 9.3% from a year earlier.

Compared with the previous month, exports fell 5.0% in seasonally adjusted terms, after expanding 8.6% from a month earlier in November and a 12.3% gain in October. The poll had estimated for a median 4.4% contraction in December.

Electronics exports declined 5.3% from a year earlier, slipping into contraction after several months of strong gains. Electronics shipments rose 5.1% in November.

Non-electronics shipments grew 6.8% from a year earlier, slowing from a 10.6% rise in November. In the non-electronics sector, highly unpredictable pharmaceutical exports rose 7.0%, accelerating from 3.2% growth in the previous month.

Singapore's shipments to China, its biggest export destination, fell 6.0% in December from a year earlier, compared with a 27.4% gain in the previous month, IE Singapore said.

Exports to the European Union, however, rose 22.1% from a year earlier after a 10.1% gain in November. Exports to the U.S. also grew 16.5% after the previous month's 15.3% increase.

Write to Gaurav Raghuvanshi at gaurav.raghuvanshi@wsj.com

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

January 16, 2018 19:48 ET (00:48 GMT)